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The Hidden Life 

or 
Walks with God 



By 
CHAS. E. ORR 

Author of ''The Grospel Day; or, Light of Christian- 
ity," ''Food for Lambs; or, Helps for Young 
Christians, " " Christian Conduct ; 
or. The Way to Heaven.'' 



Gospel Trumpet Company, 

Anderson, Indiana, U. S. A. 



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FUBHARY of OOnSW^ 
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APR 13 1908 

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Copyrighted, 1908, 

BY 

Gospel Trumpet Company. 



Introduction. 

It is the desire of every true Christian not 
only to know about the ^ Chidden life," but also 
to enter the portals and secret chambers that 
give access to the rich treasures of heaven. It 
is too often the case that those who take upon 
themselves the name of Christians plod along 
the way year after year with scarcely a realiza- 
tion of the presence and the power of God. 
They have never learned the secret of how to 
walk with God and to enjoy the sweet com- 
munion thereby afforded. There is, however, 
a plain pathway leading up to the very portals 
of this treasure-house, wh.ere the doors stand 
open wide before every pilgrim seeking to 
know the hidden mysteries within and to enjoy 
the rich blessings of the love of God. 

'^He that dwelleth in the secret place of the 
Most High shall abide under the shadow of the 
Almighty," are precious and truthful words of 
the Psalmist. But just how to find this secret 
place and to enter therein, the anxious soul 
seeks to know. This little volume reveals the 
secret and points out the way whereby the life 



IKTRODUCTIOK. 

of a Christian may be a blessed one and all 
his pathway be strewn with roses, even though 
amidst many thorns. It shows how temptations 
are overcome and trials are superseded by vic- 
tory, while the soul is enriched by the grace of 
God. The perusal of only a few pages will 
cause the reader to become conscious of the 
necessity of a closer walk with God and will 
plant a desire in the heart, together with a de- 
termination, to know more of the deep things 
of God to be found in the hidden life. 

With a fervent desire that every reader may 
receive a oenefit and learn to know more about 
the blessings of the Christian life and continu- 
ally enjoy the love of God, I remain, 

Yours in Him, 

E. E. Byrum. 



/ Contents. 

PAGE 

How Sweet Is My Walk with eTesus (Poetry) 9 

Walking with God 10 

The Hidden Life 27 

Drawing Nearer to God 51 

How to Have a Closer Walk with God 59 

Looking at Unseen Things 78 

Bright Pictures 85 

Abounding Grace 88 

What to Do in Case of Failure. .. ......... 90 

Humility 92 

The Rest of Faith 126 

Talkativeness 130 

The Christian 's Triumph 137 

Thy Will Be Done 142 

Wanting Nothing 146 

The Secret Things of God 150 

Joy 159 

Pleasing Products \ . . . . . 161 

The TVenty-third Psalm 169 

Good Works 179 

Kindness 184 

The Word of Righteousness 187 

Fervency .* 194 

Grace Sufficient 197 

Giving Encouragement . 200 

Correct Counting 203 

God Is Real 206 

Growing in Grace 213 



HOW SWEET Is MY WALK WITH JESUS! 

How sweet is my walk with Jesus I 
What blessings he breathes on me! 

We walk in the golden morning, 
And oh, how my soul is free! 

How sweet is my walk with Jesus! 

His whispers of peace I hear. 
His banner of love is o'er me, 

And angels are hovering near. 

How sweet is my walk with Jesus! 

I love all the way he trod; 
Embraced in his sweet communion, 

lai walk with the Son of God. 

I turn from the paths of pleasure 

And closer to Jesus press; 
I walk with my dear Eedeemer 

in his perfect holiness. 

Oh, sweet is my walk with Jesus! 

How gently he smiles on me! 
^et nearer my Lord so precious— 

Oh, help me to walk with thee! 

— D. S. Warner. 



10 THE HIDDEK I^FE ; 

Walking with God. 

How delightful to walk with those whom we 
love ! How blessed is the companionship of true 
and faithful friends ! As our hearts commune 
together, we grow deeper into each other's love. 
The husband and wife grow so deeply into each 
other's aifections that they seem to live in each 
other. They are of one heart and soul and life, 
and so much like each other are they that to meet 
one is to meet both. God is man's true friend. 
Never was there a love for man like God's love. 
Oh! the wide, deep, and infathomable love of 
God. It encircles the universe. It reaches to 
the most insignificant of his creatures. You 
may have other friends and those who love you, 
but he is the truest friend, and no love is as his 
love. How sweet must it be to walk with him ! 
How blessed must be the companionship of such 
a true and faithful friend! How glorious to 
commune with him as heart talks to heart and 
to feel oneself growing deeper in his love ! To 
live in him and to have our being in him and to 
have him dwell in us is to have heaven in us and 
to be in heaven. 

In giving the biography of some men, whole 
volumes have been written. The three-hundred- 



OH^ WALKS WITH GOD. 11 

years' history of one man is told in these few 
words : ' ' He walked with God. ' ' Men have con- 
quered nations, discovered continents, built 
cities, founded empires ; and volumes are re- 
quired to tell of all they have done. But Enoch 
did more— ^^ he walked with God." What a 
history ! Whole volumes have said less than this. 

But this privilege did not belong to Enoch 
alone; it is yours, reader, and it is mine. We 
have the blessed privilege of engraving this 
epitaph upon the hearts and the minds of men : 
* ' He walked with God. ' ' 

It is not said that God walked with Enoch, 
but that Enoch walked with God. Some heart 
might sighingly say, ' ' Oh, that God would walk 
with me!" Let the sighings of thy heart be 
changed to saying, ' ' Oh, let me walk with God ! ' ' 
There are many who would be pleased to have 
God walk with them, but who will not walk 
with him. God's course was marked out before 
man was created. ^ From this course he never 
turns. If you desire his companionship, you 
must walk in his way. Some seek the honor 
of walking with men of renown, but no higher 
honor can be given man than the privilege of 
walking with God. Others may delight to sit 



12 ^HE HlbDEi^ Lti^B; 

in the court of kings and desire to walk in the 
way with lords and noblemen; but my heart 
craves naught else than a walk with God. 

God will condescend to walk with those who 
walk with him ; but if you would walk with him, 
you must go in the ways in which he leads. 
Suppose you and another man took a ride 
through the country. He owned the horse and 
carriage, and did the driving. He went the way 
he desired. You went along for the sake of 
companionship. You do not say that the man 
rode with you, but that you rode with him. 
When you see a little child walking by the side 
of its father with its hand in his, you say that 
the child is walking with its father. It goes 
where its father leads. But you could not say 
that the child was walking with the father if the 
father was being led aside by the child in its 
chase after the gay butterfly. To walk with the 
Lord you must put your hand in his and go 
where he leads. 

^'But take diligent heed ... to love the 
Lord your God, and to walk in all his ways, and 
to keep his commandments, and to cleave unto 
him, and to serve him with all your heart and all 
your soul." Josh. 22: 5. You will not fail to 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 



13 



notice, I trust, that you are here commanded 
to be diligent to walk in all his ways. The 
ways in which you are to walk, if you walk with 
God, are all to be his ways. None are to be 
yours. Let me here speak to you very feelingly. 
The simple reason why you do not have a satis- 
factory walk with God is because you have not 
left all your own ways. Here is a very precious 
secret not found by every one. You would walk 
with God in a great many of his ways and would 
leave many of your ways ; but there is one 
little way you are loath to leave. Whenever the 
way of God begins to lead you from that way, 
you feel a little uneasy and almost ready to mur- 
mur. You have had many pleasant hours along 
that way of yours. The lust of the eye has been 
so often gratified there that, indeed, it seems 
like plucking outthe eye to leave that way. Oh, 
how difficult to turn away from it! So many 
fond recollections are clustering along that way. 
Some dear friend is walking there, with whom 
you are loath to part company. It may be a 
father or a mother, a husband or a wife, or 
children. It may be houses or lands. But all 
these must be forsaken to walk with Jesus. 
One young man asked, '^^Must I forsake my 



14 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

mother to walk with God?" The reply was, 
^^ Yes, you must forsake your mother— you must 
forsake all. ' ' But here is the explanation : This 
is not meant in the literal sense. You need not 
leave her home, but you can not walk in her 
ways if she walks in sin If she will forsake 
her ways to walk in God's ways, then you and 
she will walk in the same way ; but you can not 
walk in the Spirit with any one who does not 
walk with God. When their association would 
interfere with your walk with God, you must 
forsake even that. To walk with Jesus means 
for you to forsake everything that would hinder 
your walk with him. Herein lies the precious 
secret of a safe, prosperous, and happy Chris- 
tian life. 

A walk with God is a satisfactory walk. He 
who walks with God is delighted all the way. 
Alas ! many who are hoping that they are Chris- 
tians and that they will reach the fair climes 
of heaven and there delight themselves in God 
are quite dissatisfied with their walk here. A 
dissatisfied walk on earth never ends in heaven. 
Wherever God is, there is heaven, and wherever 
heaven is, there the soul is satisfied ; consequent- 
ly, to walk with God satisfies the soul. It is 



on, WALKS WITH GOD. 15 

only when man chooses his own way and walks 
apart from God that life becomes dissatisfac- 
tory. Those who choose their own way will 
meet with disappointment and with difficulties 
that they will not be able to overcome. In 
God's ways there are no disappointments. When 
our wills are submitted to him and we humbly 
and submissively walk where he leads us, we 
meet with no disappointments. A trusting saint 
said in a recent conversation : 

^^I can be satisfied only when I know I am in 
the way with Jesus ; only when I know my hand 
is in his and he is leading me. I would not take 
one little way without him. One step without 
his leading may be fatal. I can walk through 
darkness in safety when he leads. I would rather 
walk through the furnace flame with Jesus than 
through the fields of roses without him. Amid 
the flowers there may be a thorn to prick me, but 
the furnace flame can not kindle upon me when 
Christ is by my side. ' ' 

As remarked before, to walk with God one 
must follow where he leads. The command is, 
^^Be ye followers of God as dear children.'' 
A friend remarked, ^^Oh! if I only knew where 
he would lead me, or if I could only see to the 



16 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

end of the way. ' ' Thou foolish child ! Such a 
faint heart can not walk with God. One night 
during a very heavy rain a father and child 
were compelled to walk a mile to a neighbor's 
through water up to the child's waist. When 
their wet clothes were exchanged for dry, the 
neighbor said to the boy, ^^Were you not much 
afraid while walking through the deep water?" 
^ ^ No, sir, ' ' said the boy ; ' ' Papa was with me. ' ' 
Though our walk with God may lead us through 
deep water, we need not fear ; for God hath said, 
' ' They shall not overflow thee. ' ' A vessel at one 
time was in an angry storm at sea. Among 
the many passengers on board were a skeptic, 
a Christian lady, and her little boy. During 
the storm the skeptic was in great alarm, but 
he could not help noticing the calmness and 
restfulness of the lady and her boy. After the 
storm was over, he talked with the boy. 

^^My child," he began, ^^were you not afraid 
during the storm ? ' ' 

' ' No, sir, ' ' replied the boy. 

**And why were you not afraid?" inquired 
the skeptic. 

'^Because my mama was with me," answered 
the lad. 



OB^ WALKS WITH GOD. 17 

Turning to the motherj the skeptic said, 
^^Lady, were you not afraid during sudh a 
storm?" 

' ^ No, sir, ' ' replied the woman. 

^^And why were you not afraid?" he asked. 

^^ Because," said she, ^^my Father was with 
me." 

Sometimes the way in which God leads you 
may be through the storm and through the dark, 
but you need not fear nor falter. Only listen, 
and you will hear him saying, ^^Fear not, for 
I am with thee." He may lead you over some 
stony places, but he is only bringing you to the 
green pastures and the still waters just beyond. 
He may need to lead you close by a dark and 
dangerous precipice in order to bring you into 
the land of flowers in the valley. One time 
there was something I very greatly desired. I 
sought it for a time, at the advice of my friends 
to seek for it in my way, but I found it not. At 
that time I felt the Lord calling me in a way I 
had not walked before. The way led through 
some privation and suffering, and it seemed to 
lead directly away from that which I had been 
seeking. Nevertheless I decided to follow where 
Jesus led me, be that where it might. After I 



18 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

had passed through some suffering and tests, 
behold, he brought me to the very thing I was 
desiring. Blessed be his name ! ' 

Jesus knows best. If you could see down your 
future way, your eye would rest only upon the 
dangerous precipice or on the stony place, and 
you would fail to see the green pastures, the 
still waters, and the flowery fields lying beyond. 

Abraham started with his only son, Isaac, 
whom he loved, to go into the land of Moriah, 
there to offer him upon one of the mountains as 
a burnt-offering. The journey required three 
days. As they walked on their way, the happy, 
innocent boy said to Abraham, ^'My father, be- 
hold the fire and the wood, but where is the 
lamb for a burnt-offering." The father re- 
plied, ' ' My son, God will provide himself a lamb 
for a burnt-offering." The child went happily 
on his way, never thinking he was that lamb. 
Had the father told his son tliat he (Isaac) was 
to be slain and burnt upon the altar, in fear he 
would have seen the glare of the knife and have 
heard the crackling of the flames, and he would 
have failed to see the angel's delivering hand. 

Behind every cross there is a crown; beyond 
every shadow there is sunshine; below the 



OB^ WALKS WITH GOD. 19 

rapids are the still waters. If you were to see 
the cross in the distance, yon might shrink and 
consequently never wear the crown ; if yon saw 
the deepening shadow, yon might never enjoy 
the sunshine; if you heard the rapids' roar, 
you might never sail your little bark on the 
tranquil waters. Not until the cross is reached 
will God give grace to bear the cross. Put your 
hand in God's and trust him every step of the 
way. 

JJo not seek to know the future, 

jJo not stop to question why; 
follow where the Savior leads you, 

Trust him, trust him all the way. 

Never fear. He will be with you in the shadow. 
He will be with you when the waves are dash- 
ing your little bark about on life's sea. Listen, 
and in his own time you will hear him say, 
^^ Peace, be still." 

A devoted brother across the continent re- 
lated to me by letter some of his experience, 
which finds an appropriate place here. 

^^Nine years ago God brought me out of dark- 
ness into this beautiful way. He gave me a fixed 
decision to follow where he would lead me. At 
the time I did not know what the cost would be, 



20 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

but I realized it would be safe to place my hand 
in the Lord's and walk life's way with him. 1 
felt sure that as long as I trusted and obeyea 
him, he would do to me as he had promised. 
Grod said to walk with him I must leave my 
medicine behind. This I did, whereupon he 
stretched forth his hand in healing power and 
healed me instantly. Not a symptom of the dis- 
ease have I felt unto this day. 

' ' My people became much opposed to me and 
tried in every manner to turn me from the way 
in which the Lord was leading me. Some time 
after I had taken the narrow way with Jesus, 
Grod in his loving providence saw fit to take 
unto himself two of my children in one week. 
Because I trusted in God, I was bitterly perse- 
cuted, and threatened. My people endeavored 
to persuade me that God was not with me. Like 
those miserable comforters of Job's, they said 
that God was against me. I told them that 
though he should take every child I had and my 
dear companion and all, yet would I trust him. 
Well, God saw fit to put me to the test, in order 
to see whether I would hold my integrity. He 
took my little rosebud children one by one 
until all the six were blooming in heaven. Then 



0% WALKS WITH GOD. 21 

he called for my companion. She who had been 
my comfort through the tests and the trials was 
called to join the happy throng on the other 
side of the river, and I was left to monrn alone. 

^^My people scoffed at my religion. ^How,' 
asked they, ^do you expect us to believe on 
God? Do you want him to take our families as 
he has yours ? ' This was the most trying of all, 
because I did so much desire them to serve my 
God. Satan tried me severely. He endeavored 
to make me feel so lonely; to feel that no one 
cared for me and that God had forsaken me. I 
was a poor outcast, my family were all gone, 
and my friends had turned against me. Satan 
tried to make me ashamed ever to smile again. 
There seemed to be no more cheer or sunshine 
in this world for me. The light had all gone 
out, and I was alone in the dark. But in the 
midsl of all this I said, ^The Lord giveth, and 
the Lord taketh away; blessed be the name of 
the Lord.' I held fast my integrity and by 
God's help did not sin. 

'^Soon the light of a happier day began to 
dawn. Some of my people began to be favorable 
to the blessed gospel truth. One of my brothers 
yield*^ to God and was saved. (He is now 



22 



THE HIDDEN LIFE: 



heralding the gospel which he once opposed.) 
Next came my dear old mother. Her salvation 
was the full rising of the sun to my soul. Then 
came another brother and later another. All 
these now are in the blessed light of Grod and I 
am happy. I tasted the bitter, but now I am 
tasting of the sweet, and it tastes all the sweeter 
because of the bitter. I walked with God through 
the shadow, and now he has led me into the 
beautiful light. Bless his name !"— God has al- 
so given this brother a dear companion of gentle 
disposition and blesses them with a happy, 
sunny home. To take God's way is always best, 
because it ends best. 

Daniel's walk with God led him through the 
den of lions, but it gave him victory over his 
enemies and brought him into greater favor with 
the king. The three young Hebrews that walked 
with God were led through the fiery furnace, 
but their promotion in- the king's court lay just 
beyond. Peter's walk with God led him through 
the dungeon, but an angel 's visit was. awaiting 
him. Paul's walk led him through the perils on 
the sea, through hunger and fastings, through 
weariness and painfulness, through cold and 
nakedness, through perils of robbers and perils 



OR^ WALKS WITH GOD. 23 

in the wilderness, througli stoning and beating 
and whippings. Imagine this old man with his 
back bared and bowed beneath the lash. Hear 
the heavy strokes as they fall; see the blood 
flowing from the wounds; listen— what is that 
we hear him saying? Is he saying, ^'The way 
is too hard ; the Lord has treated me too cruelly, 
and I will walk no more with him?" Listen 
more closely. Ah ! he is saying, ' ' None of these 
things move me ; nothing shall separate me from 
the love of God which is in Christ Jesus, my 
Lord. I reach forth to those things before; I 
press toward the mark for the prize of the high 
calling of God in Christ Jesus. Henceforth a 
crown of righteousness is laid up for me." 

My dear Christian reader, will you not seek 
a still closer walk with God— not for your hap- 
piness in life nor for your crown in heaven, but 
for the good your example may do to others? 
You know not what effect your life is having 
upon some other life. Your life is casting either 
sunshine or shadow behind you. This will 
linger long after you are gone. It will linger 
in the hearts and lives of others. Long, ah ! long 
after you have gone from the shores of time, 
will live the effects of your example. Many 



24 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

years will be required to efface from the sands 
of time the foot-prints you make while journey- 
ing through this life. In the earnestness of my 
soul I appeal to your hearts to seek diligently a 
close walk with God. The closer you walk with 
him, the brighter will be the beams of light that 
will stream from your life down through the 
future years. Knowing this, my soul cries out, 
^'0 God! help me to walk close to thee, that I 
may be the greatest possible help to my fellow 
men and leave as much light in this world as I 
can. ' ' 

Recently, while a father and son were con- 
versing upon the subject of inheritance, the son 
remarked, ^^Well, father, since you are giving 
your life's service freely to the Lord, I suppose 
I need not expect any great inheritance from 
your^state. ' ' The father replied : ' ' No, my son ; 
I shall never have anything of this world and 
shall not be able to leave you any of its lands 
or silver or gold ; but by the grace of heaven I 
will leave you the sunshine of a holy life, which, 
I trust, will lead your feet into the way of eter- 
nal life— a richer inheritance than the gold of 
earth.''— I owe my awakening to my sinful state 



OK, WALKS WITH GOD. 25 

and the realities of salvation to the example of a 
godly man. 

How blessed it will be when, long after your 
body is laid in its narrow home, your name is 
spoken and some one remarks, ^^Ah! truly, that 
man walked with God." Many of Christ's per- 
secutors in life said at his crucifixion, ^^ Truly, 
this was the Son of God. ' ' I knew a godly young 
man who was persecuted by many; but after 
God called him to a foreign field, many of his 
persecutors said, ^'Well, he was a good young 
man, after all. ' ' You may be scoffed at in life ; 
your name may be cast out as evil ; you may be 
defamed and threatened; but after you are 
gone, many will say of you, ' ' Truly, that was a 
child of God. ' ' As the pleasantness of summer 
days is never fully realized until the winter 
days have come ; as the blessing of good health 
is never fully known until sickness comes ; so the 
beauty of your Christian life will shine brighter 
after you are gone. 

The term Enoch means dedication. Dedica- 
tion is the yielding of your heart, your life, and 
your ways to God and walking with him in all 
his ways. It is to follow where he leads; to 
bow submissive to his will, as the slender plant 



26 THE HIDDEK LIFE; 

bends to the evening breeze or the ship is turned 
about by the helm. Thank God! You can be 
an Enoch. You can be dedicated to Grod. You 
can bow an humble supplicant at his feet and 
say: 

Here is my heart — make it thy throne; 
Here is my life — make it thine own; 

Here are my eyes, lips, hands, and feet— 
Take them and use them, I do implore; 
They are thine now and forevermore. 

beloved, be not weary in the way. Toil on », 
heed not the wind and the wave. God is with 
you. With all the energy of your soul cleave 
to him. As the vine clings to the towering oak, 
so cling to your God. Live for him, show forth 
his praise, exalt his name, honor his word, 
serve him faithfully, and from out your life will 
flow the joyful message, ' ' He walked with God. ' ' 
This, falling upon the hearts and lives of other 
men, will be echoed to other generations and by 
them re-echoed to future generations, and thus 
it will be echoed and re-echoed on to the great 
and final day, and the last earth will hear will 
be, ^'He walked with God, and God took him.'' 



OR^ WALKS WITH GOD. 27 

The Hidden Life. 

^^Ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ 
in God." Col. 3:3. As the solemn chimes of 
the village curfew bell reverberate among the 
hills, announcing to all the close of another day 
and the bringing in of another night; so from 
out his text comes pealing the deep and sacred 
sound, '^ Death— life, death— life,'' which, rever- 
berating along the corridors of time, announces 
to every Christian heart the close of a life of 
sin and the beginning of a life with God. Here 
is mystery, ye saints. Ye are both dead and 
alive. This inspired writer in another place 
says, ' ^ She that liveth in pleasure is dead while 
sheliveth."lTim. 5:6. 

These two texts include the whole human 
family. Those in one division are ' ' dead in tres- 
passes and sins" and alive to the world, to the 
lusts of the flesh and the pride of life. Those in 
the second division are dead to sin and alive 
unto God. It is this class that the apostle ad- 
dresses in our first-quoted text. 

In the life of a Christian there are four points 
we wish to consider— I. They are dead. 11. 
They have life. III. Their life is a hidden life. 
IV. Their life is hid with Christ in God. 



28 



THE HIBDEK LIB^ ; 



I. The Christian is dead. Life comes only 
through death. •^He that loveth his life shall 
lose it ; and he that hateth his life in this world 
shall keep it unto life eternal." John 12: 25. 
^ rom these words of the Savior's we under- 
stand plainly that he who will not die shall not 
live, but that he who dies shall live. To die is to 
give up the world, sin, and self, and to yield all 
to God. Then you shall live. He will give you 
life. *^I am come that you might have life.'' 
But you can not have that life unless you die. 
The sinner is alive to sin and the world, but 
he is dead to God and eternal life. The Chris- 
tian is dead to sin and the world, but he is alive 
unto God. 

There is a wide separation between the Chris- 
tian and the sinner. Both have physical life, 
but it is not in this that they differ. The physi- 
cal life of a sinner and that of a saint are the 
same in nature. A heart of flesh is in the physi- 
cal body of each one, which propels the blood 
through the body. The circulation, the respira- 
tion, and the digestion are the same in both. 
They both need to eat, drink, sleep, and breathe. 
The oxygen of the air is taken into the blood 
through the lungs of the one the same as with 



OE^ WALKS WITH GOD. 29 



■m. 



the other. The food is digested in each just 
alike and answers the same end. The five physi- 
cal senses are the same in the life of the sinner 
as they are in the saint. The one has sight the 
same as the other. They both hear sonnd alike. 
Sngar tastes as sweet to one as to the other. The 
rose is fragrant to both. Both feel heat and 
cold. The great gulf of separation between saint 
and sinner is not found in the physical life. 
Nevertheless there is a vast difference between 
them, for the one is alive and the other is dead. 
But the difference is not in the physical life : for 
in this they both live, and this life in its nature 
is the same in both. 

Man has a higher life than the physical life. 
He possesses a moral, or spiritual, being; and 
this spiritual being has life. It is in the life of 
this spiritual being that we find the difference 
between saint and sinner. The sinner is alive 
in sin but dead to God ; while the saint is dead 
to sin and alive to God. The nature of their 
moral being is directly opposite. There is no 
communion nor affinity between them in a spir- 
itual sense. 

You see two men driving by in a carriage 
'I'hey look very much the same to you. They 



30 



THE HIDDEN LIFE; 



look the same because you see only the physical 
being, and in this they are flesh and blood alike ; 
but in their moral being they may be as unlike 
as the day is unlike the night. The condition of 
the moral being has some effect on the physical 
features, but it makes no change in the nature 
of the physical life. But spiritually speaking, 
one is dead; the other alive. One is sinful in 
his nature ; the other righteous. The one walks 
in sin; the other walks with God in holiness, 
'liie one has eternal death in his soul; the other 
has eternal life. If the physical life of these 
two men should suddenly come to an end, the 
spirit being of one would be carried by the 
angels into the sweet paradise of God, while the 
spirit being of the other would be borne down 
to the regions of torment. Why is this? Be- 
cause one has eternal life and the other eternal 
death. The one is a sinner and the other a saint. 
Spiritually speaking, correspondence between 
saint and sinner is as completely cut off as is the 
correspondence between the creatures of earth 
and those on the planet Jupiter. No instrument 
has yet been invented whereby man can receive 
any intelligence from the beings on other worlds. 
Neither is there any communion between saint 



I 



OR^ WALKS WITH GOD. 31 

and sinner except in the physical realm. The 
Christian is raised up to a heavenly plane. He 
has been resurrected to a higher life. In the 
physical life the Christian and the sinner dwell 
together; but in the spiritual life the Christian 
is as high above the sinner as Jupiter is higher 
than earth. 

There is correspondence between them in a 
physical sense. They converse together and 
do business together. They can talk about the 
beauty and the grandeur of the landscape, be- 
cause they can both see it. They can talk to- 
gether about the sweet warbling of the birds, 
because they can both hear. They converse to- 
gether concerning the pleasantness of the even- 
ing breeze, because they both can feel it. They 
comment together upon the delicious flavor of 
the peach, because they can both taste it. They 
speak together of the fragrance of the rose 
and comprehend each other, because they can 
both smell it. But when the saint begins to talk 
of the sweet tastes of the love of God and says 
the word of God is sweeter than honey and 
the honey comb, the sinner is silent. He knows 
nothing about this. These things are found in 
a higher life than sinners possess. If they will 



32 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

but die, they can then be resurrected to a life 
where they can have sweet tastes of God. Oh! 
thank God for the high and blessed life of a 
Christian ! 

To have your life hid with Christ in God is 
a sweet and safe and blessed experience. My 
soul adores God and tears of gratitude unbidden 
start at the remembrance of his goodness in 
elevating us above this world and in bringing 
our souls into correspondence with heavenly 
things. Oh, that we can be raised up so near 
to the golden gates of glory that we can hear 
celestial strains of music; that we can have 
sweet visions of God, can taste his love, and 
feel its warmth in our soul ! Blessed experience! 
One little thrill of heavenly rapture rippled over 
the soul by the Spirit of God is worth more than 
years of the pleasures of this world. 

There is a death fixed between the wicked and 
the righteous. If the unrighteous would get 
into communion with the righteous, he must die. 
We find in the natural world that life is gained 
only through death. ^^ Except a corn of wheat 
fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone. ^' 
This same law is found to exist in the spiritual 
world. ^'Whosoever will save his life shall lose 



OR^ WAJLKS WITH GOD. 33 

it; and whosoever will lose his life for my sake 
shall j&nd it.'^ Except ye die, ye can not live. 
Let me give you a panoramic view of the 
natural, sinful life of the human race. See a 
company of dancers in the brilliantly-lighted 
ball-room. See the gamblers at their crafty 
work. See the inebriate at the saloon counter 
drinking down the fiery liquid. That horrid 
scene yonder is a young woman of lost virtue 
seeking to wreck the lives of young men. That 
yonder is a secret-order hall, where heart-appall- 
ing oaths are taken, where men practise abomin- 
ations, and where God is blasphemed. Take a 
look at the pride and the revelry of the world : 
the cold, proud formalism of sectarian worship. 
See the sect professors in their church fair, their 
testival bazaar, and their many money-making 
and pleasure-affording amusements. See the 
spectators at the prize fight ; at the wrestling 
match ; at the horse race ; at the foot-ball, base- 
ball and basket-ball games. See the cursers and 
the swearers, the chewers and the smokers, the 
jesters and the jokers. Hear the vulgar, un- 
godly stories, the slang, the idle words. See the 
cheating and the stealing, the false vows and the 
broken promises. See the young lady dressing 



34 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

in her profusion of laces and ribbons and jewels. 
See the jealousies, the envyings, the strife, the 
confusion, the hatred, and the malice. See the 
young in their misguided courtship. See the 
abomination of the theater. See the women of 
the world, decked with jewels and finery and 
paints and powders and bound by corsets. Look 
at the quarreling, the fighting, the murders, the 
divorces, the illegal marriages, the adulteries, 
etc. 

Look this picture over carefully from top to 
bottom and from side to side, and include every 
sin that is not mentioned herein. See every 
heart-beat of a worldly, sensual life. To such a 
life the saint is dead, dead, dead. This is what 
the apostle meant when he said, ^^ Ye are dead.'' 

11. These Colossian saints had life. I have 
already brought in some points respecting the 
Christian life, but I will say farther that this 
life is the Christ-life. It is gained by a resurrec- 
tion. Those Colossians were risen with Christ. 
They had passed from a state of death in sin 
to a life in Christ. They were new creatures. 
In Christ the Christian lives and moves and has 
his being. The miser loves to be near his gold. 
Its jingle is music in his ear. His life is tied up 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 35 

in the bags with his treasures ; and when he is 
compelled to be separated from them for a 
time, how eagerly, when opportunity affords, 
does he return to them and commune with them ! 
So the saint loves to be near Christ. There is 
music in his sweet whispers of love. When 
called apart by the secular things of life, the 
Christian returns with eagerness, when oppor- 
tunity affords, to commune with . Him who is 
his life. 

Whatever is the life of a man, that is what he 
loves and that is what he would ever be near. 
That is what he feeds upon and what gives him 
delight. It nourishes him, and his life grows 
stronger. He would have more of that which 
feeds him and delights him. That is why Chris- 
tians seek after God. They seek him in prayer ; 
they seek him in the Bible; they seek him in 
nature ; they seek him first of all in everything 
and in every place. They flee away from that 
which would hinder them in their pursuit. They 
lay aside every weight and everything that 
would come in between them and the object of 
their heart's love. A Spirit-filled soul pants 
after God. It pursues his presence with as fer- 
vent desire as the miser seeks for gold. ^^My 



3C THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

soul foUoweth hard after thee, God," says th« 
saint. 

Some professors of religion can be satisfied 
and contented when absent from God; they can 
satisfy themselves with empty forms and cold 
ceremonies, because God is not their life. But 
the saint must often be admitted into the pre- 
sence of God, must commune with him. His 
soul reaches forth for more of the divine life as 
the physical being does for air and food. As the 
physical man must breathe, or he will die; so 
the Christian's soul must feed upon God, or it 
will die. As man will sacrifice everything for 
food and breath, so the saint sacrifices every- 
thing for God. He forsakes all and he watches 
and prays lest something alienate his heart from 
God. The life that makes a man a Christian 
brings him into fellowship with God. It sepa- 
rates him from the world even as Jesus was 
separated from the world. This is life eternal. 
If he maintains his Christian integrity, he will 
die no more. The physical part will come to 
dissolution ; it will lose correspondence with the 
world; but he (the man) will live on and on 
forever : he will never see death. Oh, wonderful 
and glorious life ! 



o^, wal^s with god. 37 

It may be that soita^. reader who once had this 
liie, did not ^ard it as he should and to-day is 
lifeless. He has lost his first love. Sad, indeed ! 
but there is hope. The river of life is still flow- 
ing in all its crystal pnreness and revivif3dng 
power fresh from the throne of God. Fly to the 
Savior this moment. He will give you life. 
Commit your soul anew unto him ; throw your- 
self upon his mercy. In humility and repent- 
ance seek his face. Knock as one who knows 
that heaven and immortal glory depends upon 
the door's being opened now. Some day it will 
be too late. Knock now, seek now, and Christ 
will give you the Spirit of life. 

The Christian's life on earth is a life with 
God; it is a life of holiness and peace, a life of 
faith and rest ; it is heaven on earth, heaven be- 
gun below. Wonderful life ! Oh, how blessed ! 
God is in the soul; his love and peace fills the 
entire being and lifts man above the material 
things of earth and brings him near heaven. 
Jesus did not say only, ^^I am come that thej^ 
may have life," but also, ^Hhat they may have 
it more abundantly. ' ' 

This abundant life brings us near heaven. 
Earth is lost sight of. Crucified to the world 



38 ^HE HIDDEN life; 

and the world unto ns, we realize that we ar6 
only strangers and pilgrims here. This is not 
our home. We are not in our element here. We 
stay here for the sake of Him who died for us 
and for the souls he died to save. Our home 
is in heaven, and we are here waiting for the 
angels to come and carry us home. 

This life which Christians have is the life of 
God. It binds us to heaven. It transports us 
far above this world. We are here in this world 
as physical beings, but our hearts are not here. 
Our affections are on heavenly things. The 
more abundant the life, the nearer we are to 
God and heaven and the farther we are from 
the world. beloved pilgrim, seek those things 
which will strengthen the life of Christ in the 
soul. Seek God until every fiber of your spir- 
itual being is quivering with life. So live with 
God that heaven daily opens more and more to 
your view and the world fades away. Mount up 
higher in the realms of joj and love; and drink 
in of that abundant life until your soul is a gush- 
ing well-spring of life. 

The word of God is the chief means by which 
this divine life is wrought and supported in the 
soul. Man does not live by bread alone. Bread 



OR^ WALKS WITH GOB. 39 

is needful to the physical life ; but the Christ-life 
in the soul needs the word of God. The Chris- 
tian feeds upon the blessed Scriptures, and they 
nourish him in the divine life. In the sacrea 
page he beholds heaven's purity. Grace and 
glory shine forth resplendent, and his soul bows 
in holy awe and adoration before the eternal 
word of life. Sweet walks with God are main- 
tained, and the hidden life of a Christian is sup- 
ported, only by daily feeding upon the Scrip- 
tures. 

The Christian has life. Not to have the life 
of Christ is not to be a Christian. This life 
does not consist in external acts alone. Men 
eat, drink, sleep : this is natural life. Men hold 
converse, or communion, with each other: this 
is social life. They buy, sell, and carry on 
their business industries : this is civil life. They 
attend church services and take an active in- 
terest in the external duties : this is the out- 
ward form of a religious life. But the true 
Christian life is more than all this. While the 
Christian has the natural, the social, the civil, 
and the external religious life, he has more. 
He has down in the depths of his inner being a 
well-spring of living water. 



40 tHE HIDDEN Lli'B; 

Some of the ocean currents, I am told, have a 
double flow. They have a surface current flow- 
ing in one direction and an under current flow- 
ing an opposite direction. This well of living 
water in the soul has a double flow. It flows 
out to Grod and men and flows in from God. 
There must be a constant flowing in from God, 
or there can be no outward flow. A well that is 
flowing out, but that has no inward flow, will 
soon become empty. And a well that has neither 
flow will soon contain only stagnant water. This 
inward flow from God is maintained by prayer 
and meditation. This well of water in the soul 
is a well of living water; it is a well springing 
up into everlasting life. It is fittingly repre- 
sented by an artesian well, which needs no sur- 
face pump. The outward flow is maintained by 
the pressure of the inward flow. If you have 
and use a surface pump, you have not a well- 
spring of living water. If your religious life 
consists in external duties, and if it costs con- 
siderable effort to pray, to witness for God, and 
to talk to men of God and heavenly things, yours 
is a surface pump. 

The force that produces the outward flow 
from an artesian well is down in the depths be- 



OE^ WALKS WITH GOD. 41 

low. It is the pressure of the inward flow* 
Open the check- valve at any time and the water 
flows. The force that produces the inward flow 
of the water of life in the Christian heart is the 
exercise of the soul in prayer. The more the 
soul is thus exercised the stronger is the inward 
pressure. Without the soul's being exercised 
in converse with Grod ; without its being deeply 
concerned about the affairs of eternity ; without 
examination of the heart ; or without secret read- 
ing, meditation, inquiries, and seekings— the in- 
ward flow from God will not be maintained. 

The outward flow is necessary. The pressure 
of the inward flow raises the water so high, and 
if there is no outward flow, the inward flow 
ceases, and all will become stagnant. The ex- 
ercise of the child only increases the demand 
for food. The food eaten by the child produces 
a force which must be spent, or else the demand 
for the food will diminish. Life in the soul will 
manifest itself in the eager performance of 
Christian duties. He who neglects the external 
duties belonging to the Christian life, will dimin- 
ish the demand for spiritual food and interrupt 
the inward flow of the life from God. 



42 *HE HIDDEN Lt JFE ; 

III. The life of a Christian is a hidden life. 
The men of this world wonder how the Chris- 
tian can enjoy life as he does. ^'The hours he 
spends in his closet— what can he be doing 
there?" wonders the worldly man. ^^How can 
he be so indifferent to the gay things of the 
world? What strange business can he be in? 
He is not in the political strife, not in the con- 
test for fame, nor in the rush for money. He 
is very peculiar. We do not understand him/' 
His life is hidden from the world. The Chris- 
tian does not desire rich and gay clothing, fine 
carriages and the pomp and show of the world. 
His heart pants not after these things. The 
saint envies no man his gold or his fame. He 
does not live in these things. His life is hid 
with Christ in God, and oh, how he Iovqs to 
meet God in secret! This is his life. How 
sweet to get an hour from the duties of life to 
hold communion with Him who is his life! It 
is in the closet this secret, hidden life receives 
strength. Neglect the secret chamber, and the 
spiritual life will weaken. How true ! but as I 
write I weep because so few will be benefited 
by these truths. Many people acknowledge that 
they do not pray enough, but after making the 



oti, wal:&s wi1?h god. 43 

acknowledgement they go on the same as before. 

Too many people are too greatly interested 
in the forms of godliness and not enough in 
the power. They admire the shining formalities, 
the empty show of religion. These things are 
rninons to the hidden life of a saint. If he 
values this secret life, he will guard it from the 
attacks of the world. If the company he is in, 
if the occupation he is engaged in, alienates his 
heart from God, then let him free himself. Be 
watchful and careful that the things of sense 
do not call your thoughts out and away from 
God. 

Allow me now to give you a panoramic view 
of the secret, hidden life that Christians live. 
You see a woman retire to the quiet of her closet. 
She engages in prayer to God. She tells him of 
her trials and burdens of life. He comforts her 
by his grace and sheds over her soul a peace and 
joy that make the place seem like the gateway 
to heaven. She there receives food and strength 
for the divine life in her soul. 

Yonder under a tree is a man in prayer. He 
has come to the fountain of life to drink. This 
is foolishness to the man of the world, but there 
the Christian drinks. He feels life fresh from 



44 THE fi:iDi>Ei;r ut^fi; 

the throne of God reanimating his spirit, and he 
says, ^^I know my Eedeemer lives." Oh, the 
blessedness of communion with God ! The soul 
tastes the sweets of heaven. Nothing on earth 
can equal it. The pleasures of the world fade 
away ; heaven draws nearer. The eye of faith 
is looking into the glory-world, and that glitter- 
ing crown of life and unfading inheritance is 
brought distinctly to view. The rapturous songs 
01 angels can almost be heard, and wondrous 
delight ravishes the soul as the glory of the im- 
mortal One is beheld. 

The man of the world knows not the sweet 
tastes of heavenly glories that the Christian has 
while in secret prayer. As his soul is wafted 
upward on the spirit of inspiration, he beholds 
the wondrous majesty of the Creator, the 
myriads of shining angels, the unfading crowns, 
and harps of gold, and he longs for the day 
when he shall fly away to the bright, beautiful 
land. What becomes of this old world, do you 
suppose, when one gets such a view of heaven? 
Does it any longer fill the mind or draw upon 
the affections? As glow-worms and stars and 
moon grow dim and fade away before the light 
of the sun ; so this world with its pleasures fades 



OB, WAIiKS WITH GOD. 45 

away as heaven's bright glories dawn to our 
soul. 

In another place you see a family gathered 
around the fireside reading the Bible and con- 
versing about heavenly things. The father is 
telling the children of the crucified One, that he 
loved us and died for us and went into heaven 
to prepare a bright mansion for us to live in 
forever. See the expression of hope on their 
faces. Look at the light of their countenances. 
Ah! do not tell me that any pleasure of earth 
can be compared to the joys and the blessings 
of the family worship. 

There you see a plainly-dressed young lady 
going with a message of love and encouragement 
to a sick-chamber. That group of saintly young 
people you see yonder are talking of the ex- 
cellencies of Christian virtue and the bleseed- 
ness of saving grace. They are conversing about 
the glories of heaven and what will be their joy 
when they pass through the gates into that sweet 
land of rest. They do not know just what they 
shall be in that eternal home, but they know 
that they shall be like Jesus. 

In an upper room is a company of saints 
washing each other's feet, as Jesus told them, 



46 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

and partaking of the bread and wine in remem- 
brance of Him whom they love. Down in yonder 
peaceful stream is a man being bnried in bap- 
tism, thns testifying to the world of his death 
to sin and of his resurrection to a new life. 

All this is a beautiful picture. Look it over. 
There is nothing in it that the sinner loves. It 
is a hidden life to him. He has no existence in 
it. It is life from above. It is life eternal. 
blessed, wonderful life! 

IV. The life of a Christian is hid with Christ 
in God. Oh, that my pen could picture to your 
mind the glory and the strength of these words ! 
Christ is hid in God, and there with him our life 
is hid. We have no need of fear. Nothing can 
touch the Christian's life. When Jesus was 
here he said, ^^He that loseth his life for my 
sake, shall find it." Every one that comes to 
Christ must give up his life to him. What does 
he do with it? He hides it in God. Is it any 
wonder the Christian's soul pants after God? 
Is it any wonder his heart yearns and longs for 
him and reaches forth to him? His life is there. 
Does not the miser long for the presence of his 
gold? It is his life. 



OB, WALKS WITH GOD. . 47 

Some have thought it a reproach or a dis- 
grace to be a Christian. On the contrary, the 
poorest and most illiterate Christian on earth 
is a much more glorious person than the most 
learned and refined sinner in the world. The 
Christian has communion with God. He has the 
life of God ; and where the life of God is, there 
is moral excellence. 

The Christian does not live upon the things 
of the world ; he lives upon God. The creatures 
of earth were not intended to be his life and his 
joy. They are too mean and coarse a food for a 
Christian. He has a high and noble life that 
can not be supported by the coarse things of 
earth. He eats angels' food. The food of his 
best life is infinite and immortal. The man of 
the world is in hot pursuit for the things of the 
world because they are his portion and his life. 
It is different with a Christian. He has a higher 
life, a nobler origin, and he sustains a higher 
character. His life is divine and must have 
divine food to support it. 

Oh, the wonderful condescension of divine 
grace ! What great honors are bestowed upon a 
humble saint! His lowly home is graced with 
heaven's glories. God and Christ come to dwell 



48 . THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

with him. While the king on his throne is at- 
tended by servants, the hnmble backwoods 
Christian is attended by angels. Bnt God and 
Christ and the angels are nnseen. The Chris- 
tian's company is nnseen by the world. His 
life is hid— hid with Christ in God. 

Why does a lively Christian love to be so often 
and so much where Christ and God are? It is 
because they are his life. His sonl pants after 
God; it cries ont for the living God. Oh, to 
be in his presence continually, to revel in his 
love, to dwell in the light of his countenance 
and see more and more of him!— these are the 
cravings of the Christian's heart. 

Those men whose sonl and life is wrapped np 
in the things of this world are ever seeking, 
searching, striving after them. The covetous 
man loves to be near his gold. He ties up his life 
in his bags of silver. He is very unwilling to be 
long absent from them. The politician is ever 
seeking the society of his political friends and 
pushing his political claims. What a man lives 
upon, that is what he longs after and would be 
ever near, so that he may have the high pleasure 
of feeding upon it and by it being nourished 
and sustained. 



OB, WALKS WITH GOD. 49 

What the things of the world are to sensual 
men, God and Christ are to the Christian. Christ 
is his life. He is crucified with Christ. He 
lives, and yet he does not live. His life is hid 
with Christ in God. He has tasted the sweet 
waters of divine life, and he would ever have his 
soul invigorated by them. When he is near 
God he feels secure ; he feels that he lives. He 
is satisfied because he is near the spring of his 
life. He has nothing to fear. The name of the 
Lord is his strong tower, where he is ever safe. 
When the arrows of death are flying thick 
around and pestilence is walking abroad every- 
where; when thousands are falling at his side 
and ten thousand at his right hand— he experi- 
ences no terror, for he has made the Lord his 
refuge and the Most High his habitation. In 
God only does he feel safe. The Lord is the 
only refuge for his life. No other place is se- 
cure. When dangers threaten, he feels secure, 
because his life is hid with Christ in God. 

Is it any wonder that the Christian seeks after 
God? Is it any wonder the apostle tells him to 
^^seek those things which are above?" They 
go often into the closet, because God is there. 
They go to the family worship with delight, 



50 !rHE HIDDEN LIFE; 

because God is there. They go to the Bible with 
a keen relish, because it is life to their soul. 
They go to the place of public worship, because 
God is there. They are ever seeking to be where 
God is and do not go where God is not. A Spirit- 
filled soul seeks after God with a fervency. It 
flees to his presence. It is only there the soul 
is satisfied, because only there is it safe. 

pilgrim to that land of rest, you need have 
no fear. It may sometimes seem that the storms 
of life are going to wrench you out of the hands 
of God, but fear not ; trust in him ; he will never 
let you fall. The vine clings to the oak in the 
wild^est storm. Storms may uproot the oak, but 
the vine still clings to it. Notice why this is. 
If the vine is on the opposite side of the tree 
from the storm, the tree is its protection; and 
if the vine is on the exposed side, the storm only 
presses it closer to the tree. In some of the 
storms of life God intervenes and portects us, 
and in others he exposes us for the purpose of. 
having us pressed more closely to him. Nothing 
can separate us from him. Christian, go on 
your way. Remember where your life is and go 
rejoicing. Trials may come, the storms may 
blow, you may be scoffed at, you may be per- 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 51 

secuted and threatened ; but go hopefully, trust* 
ingly on, and some day, when Christ, who is 
your life, shall appear, then shall you appear 
with him in glory. 



Drawing Nearer to God* 

Afteh beholding the goodness of God, the 
power of his right hand, and the wisdom of his 
counsel, the psalm-writer's soul was so enrap- 
tured and ravished with love that he exclaimed, 
' ' Whom have I in heaven but thee ? and there is 
none upon earth that I desire beside thee. ' ' His 
whole heart and soul was turned toward God. 
The world lay behind. him. He was looking up- 
ward, and as he caught a deeper vision of heav- 
en 's glories and the greatness and the goodness 
of God, he exclaimed in eagerness, ^^ As the hart 
panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my 
soul after thee, God." The same passion 
filled the breast of that intensely-devoted man 
of God, Paul, when he said, ^^I am in a strait 
betwixt two, having a desire to depart and to be 
with Christ, which is far better." 



THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

God is unchangeable in his nature. The at- 
tributes of Grod are as beauteous in perfection 
now as they were then. The several glories of 
God are as radiant and the love and blessings 
of heaven as full of sweetness now as they were 
then. The nature of the soul has not changed. 
The love of God and the beauty of his perfec- 
tions will enrapture the soul now as it did when 
David said, ^^My soul followeth hard after 
thee/' and when Paul said, ^^For in this we 
groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon 
with our house which is from heaven." The 
breathings of the soul of every true saint is, 
' ' Nearer, my God, to thee. ' ' Of ttimes the desire 
for God is so great that they long to go to him 
and satisfy their soul in his presence. Those 
who have no desire to get nearer him are in- 
deed very far from him. Those who are nearest 
him have the greatest desire to get nearer. The 
words of a holy man of God is the language of 
every devoted heart. 



*'0h, sweet is my walk with Jesus! 
How gently he smiles on me! 
Yet nearer my Lord so precious — 
Oh, help me to walk with thee I ' ' 



OR^ WALKS WITH GOD. 53 

Another poet breathed forth the longings of 
every soul filled with heaven's love: 

* * Oh, for a closer walk with God ! ' ' 

He who has tasted the love of God desires to 
have deeper tastes of that love. He who has 
heard the gentle voice telling the sweet redemp- 
tion story desires to hear it over and over. He 
who has felt the touch of the Spirit of God upon 
his soul desires to feel that touch more sensibly. 
He who has seen the beauty of the Lord desires 
to dwell in his presence that he may see more of 
that beauty. 

The pleasures of earth have no attraction for 
the soul embraced in sweet communion with 
God. He who has tasted heaven's pure love 
turns not to the world for enjoyment. He seeks 
not the company of the worldly minded. He 
enjoys not so much the talking about the vulgar 
things of the world as he does the conversing 
about the goodness of the Lord. He is looking 
above to get clearer visions of God. As the 
little flower instinctively opens to receive the 
falling dew, so his heart is open to catch the 
blessings as they fall from the censers swing- 
ing around the throne of God. His soul is 
listening to catch every strain of heavenly music, 



54 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

and in his heart he would that he could draw a 
little nearer, so that he might hear it more dis- 
tinctly. There is so much clamor and confusion 
in the world that he longs to be lifted higher 
above it, in order that he might hear more of 
heaven. Oh, that the veil of mortality might be 
lifted, so that he might see the grandeur of the 
celestial fields ! As the bee goes from flower to 
flower, sipping their sweetness ; so the soul rav- 
ished with the love of Grod, goes from one divine 
attribute of perfection to another and from one 
glory and grace to another, gathering material 
for building and garnishing the temple of God 
in the heart. 

If we draw near to God, he will draw near to 
us. As we stand before a mirror, our image 
is pictured just as far in the background as we 
are distant from the mirror. As we approach 
the mirror, our image comes toward the front. 
Then we can see the features more distinctly. 
God is just as far from us as we are from him. 
As we come nearer to him, he will come nearer 
to us. Bless his name! The nearer we come 
to him, the more distinctly can we see the per- 
fection of his character. Therefore the nearer 
we draw to God, the deeper conception will we 



on, WALKS WITH GOD. 55 

have of his holiness. We are made to exclaim 
as ' we draw nearer, ' ' Holy, holy, holy is the 
Lord of hosts ; the whole earth is filled with his 
glory." We see greater purity in God's work. 
Oh, how our souls stand in awe and wonder be- 
fore the perfection of God's works ! As we look 
upon the sun, moon, and stars, and take a sur- 
vey of the universe as far as the mind and vision 
can carry us, we say, ^^In purity and wisdom 
has he created them all. ' ' 

As we get nearer to God, we see more clearly 
the purity of his word. We exclaim with that 
admirer of God's law, ''How pure is thy word! 
therefore thy servant loveth it." Oh, what 
purity and beauty we see in such expressions as 
these ! ' ' Bear ye one another 's burdens. " ' ' In 
lowliness of mind let each esteem others better 
than himself. " ' ' As ye would that men should 
do to you, do ye also unto them likewise. ' ' The 
nearer we get to God, the greater beauty we 
see in these plain, simple words, and the more 
we love. How wondrously pure they are ! How 
sweet the lif e> in which they are fulfilled ! How 
our souls reach out to receive these beautiful 
words ! Our hearts feed upon tliem with a sweet 
relish. They delight our souls. How dear is the 



56 



Bible to the heart of those who walk with God ! 
and the closer they walk, the dearer is this 
precious book. 

Drawing nearer to God includes getting a 
deeper consciousness of our own nothingness. 
The Lord recently helped me to feel my help- 
lessness, insomuch that I saw I was helpless to 
realize my helplessness unless God helped me by 
his Spirit to realize it. The nearer we get to 
God, the more clearly we see his greatness and 
the smaller we become. Oh, how infinitely little ! 
We simply sink into insignificance. We make 
such a tiny speck on the scroll of creation that 
we can hardly be found with the most powerful 
magnifying-glass. A mere weak worm. Just 
one light stroke from the hand of God and we 
are blotted out. The very greatest man that 
ever lived is utterly nothing. Oh, shame on the 
poor mortal that thinks himself something! 
When we see God in his greatness, we see our- 
selves less than the least. 

As you get nearer God, you get into greater 
light. You see more clearly what true holiness 
is; you better understand the nature of this 
beauteous grace. If you would know whether 
there are any imperfections in your heart and 



OB, WALKS WITH GK)D. 57 

life draw near to Grod, and yon will make the 
discovery. Maybe there are some idle or hasty 
words in yonr general conversation, and yon 
are not aware of it. Maybe some article of 
dress tells of pride in yonr heart, and yon do 
not see it. Maybe yon have too mnch thought 
for the world and do not know it. Maybe yon 
have acted from a selfish motive and are not 
conscious of it. If yon will draw near to God 
and examine yonrself in the light of his holi- 
ness yon will be able to see these blemishes. Yon 
examine a piece of cloth in a dimly-lighted room 
and think it perfect, and yon are surprised to 
find so many defects in it when examined in the 
clear light of the sun. 

Drawing nearer to God implies getting a bet- 
ter understanding of the relationship that exists 
between God and his children. You might be 
told of the closeness of this relationship and of 
God's love to you, but you will never under- 
stand it until you get near to God. If God's 
children only knew, could only comprehend, the 
yearning love God has for them, they would 
never have a fear, and oh, how carefully they 
would walk before him, lest they wound that 
love ! The nearer you get to God, the better you 



58 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

will understand this. Just recently God gave 
me such a vision of his love as almost over- 
whelmed me. I could not feel more of the power 
of God's love and live. See how he feeds the 
fowls of the air and clothes the lily of the field, 
and now hear him say to you, ' ' My child, you are 
much more to me than they." If you under- 
stand what this means, it will take all fear and 
distrust out of your life. You will take no 
thought for the morrow. You will not have a 
care. You will be wholly free from fret and 
worry. God is real, and you will understand 
him so as you get nearer to him. 

Drawing nearer to God is getting a deeper 
work of grace in the heart. The character of 
God will be imaged in our souls just as we see 
it to be in him. If you have but a faint con- 
ception of God's holiness, his holiness will be 
but faintly imaged in your soul. The same is 
true of all the graces. Just as you see them in 
God, so you will bear their image in your heart. 
As when standing far away from a mirror, you 
can not see your features so plainly as when 
you get nearer ; so when far away from God, you 
can not see his attributes so plainly as when you 
draw near. Oh, how beautiful are the perfections 



OB^ WALKS WITH GOD. 59 

of God ! They captivate my soul. I stand and 
look upon his lowliness, his meekness, his gentle- 
ness, his long-suffering, his mercy, and his love, 
and oh, how my soul does desire him ! 

Proud world, my soul to you has said adieu, 
There is no room within my heart for you; 
Your charms may gratify some other mind. 
But all my spirit seeks, in God I find. 
I answer not, proud world, unto thy beck or call; 
My heart is fixed— to me my God is all. 



How to Have a Closer Walk with God. 

The breathings of the Christian's soul are, 
' ' Oh, for a closer walk with God ! ' ' This is no 
evidence of emptiness, stagnation, or aching 
void. It is evidence of thrift, growth, health, 
and appetite. Every spiritual child of God de- 
sires to cling yet more lovingly to Jesus' hand 
and to lean more affectionately upon his breast. 
The children of this world are in a rush after 
the fashions, the wealth, the show, and the 
pleasures of the world, but the Christian is fol- 
lowing hard after God; he is seeking those 
things which are above. The children of the 



60 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

world obtain because they seek. If the child 
of heaven will seek after the things of heaven 
as earnestly as the child of earth seeks after the 
things of earth, he will surely find. ' ' Seek, and 
ye shall find. ' ' 

The children of this world do not go among 
the children of the kingdom of God in search 
of worldly treasures, but they seek for these 
things among those who are of their own spirit. 
Oh, may the children of light be as wise as the 
children of darkness! Do you desire a closer 
walk with God? are you seeking after more 
and more of heavenly things I do not go in search 
of these treasures among those who are of a 
worldly spirit. Seek for heavenly things among 
those who have heavenly things to give. Jesus 
has heavenly things to bestow upon you. He 
will give you grace. He will increase your 
love and faith and give you more meekness, hu- 
mility, gentleness, etc. ; therefore seek his com- 
panionship. As the gentle night emits the soft 
siftings of dew upon the flower, so from the 
presence of the Lord is emitted the siftings of 
the heavenly graces. These will fall upon your 
soul if you but linger in his presence. As the 
fragrance of the flower perfumes the air and 



OR^ WALKS WITH GOD. 61 

leaves its scent upon our clothing, so the fra- 
grance from the sweet life of Christ will perfume 
our souls. 

Also, those who walk with God have heavenly 
things to bestow upon others. As the heavenly 
graces shine upon them from the presence of the 
Lord, they are reflected by them upon others. 
Seek therefore for heavenly things among the 
children of God. I love to be in the company 
of those who love the Lord and are walking near 
him. I love to be with those whose souls are 
full of grace and whose hearts are reaching out 
after God. I would a thousand times rather 
be in the backwoods man's humble hut con- 
versing with his God-fearing family about the 
tnirtgs above than to be in the court of kings^. 

A sister, poor in this world's goods but rich 
in grace, came into my home a few mornings 
since. I made inquiry concerning her spiritual 
prosperity. She told me that the Lord was very 
precious to her soul and that he was dealing 
most graciously with her. I asked her to tell us 
of some of the Lord's gracious dealings, that 
we might see some of the manifestations of his 
love to his children and that our hearts might 
be encouraged. She then related several in- 



62 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

stances wherein God had answered her prayers. 
One of thesQ instances I will relate. Her provi- 
sions were daily growing more scanty. The 
flonr was almost gone. She went again and 
again in prayer to God. One morning she baked 
the last of the flour and knew not where bread 
for her and her children's dinner was to be had, 
only her trust was in the God that miraculously 
fed Elijah. Before noon a boy brought her a 
bag of wheat. This was taken to the mill and 
exchanged for flour, and thus God supplied their 
needs. As she related this simple story of God's 
love and goodness to her, he became dearer and 
more precious to our hearts and we were re- 
minded again how blessed it is to trust him. 
Such sweet stories of God's gracious dealing 
with his trusting children lift our souls heaven- 
ward until we feel more as if we were in heaven 
than on earth. 

One autumn day I went to baptize a sister 
who had been converted at our camp-meeting 
two months before and who I had not seen since 
the meeting. She met me at the door with a 
hearty ' ' Praise the Lord ! ' ' There was heaven- 
ly music in her voice. When we were seated, 
she began to tell me of God's goodness to her 



OR^ WALKS WITH GOD. 63 

since her conversion. Her sonl had been full of 
joy; day and night she had snng praises to God. 
She had made her wrongs right. Among her 
wrongs to make right was a small sum of money 
she owed a jewelry firm. Bnt she conld in no 
way obtain their address, as some years had 
gone by since the jewelry had been sent her from 
some firm in a distant city. Being nnable to 
obtain the address, she sent the money to a 
minister to help in the work of God. Once she 
longed to go to a certain meeting ; but her hus- 
band said if it rained that day so he could not 
get a certain piece of work done, he could not 
take her to the meeting the next day. Although 
it looked very rainy, her faith staggered not. She 
told God of her love to him and of her love to 
his people ; she told him how she longed to go to 
meeting. She then asked God to disperse the 
clouds and to stay the rain, so that her hus- 
band might get his work done. In a few moments 
the sun was shining out clear and bright, and 
it did not rain. 

At this juncture a tramp peddler came to the 
door. She invited him to a seat and went on 
at once telling me of the goodness of God to 
her. She said she prayed three times every 



64 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

day for her husband's salvation. At one time 
he was away from home for a few days npon the 
sea. On Sunday morning at ten o'clock she 
asked God to convict him of his sins, to make him 
uneasy, and to give him a deep concern for his 
soul. When he came home, she asked him 
whether he had had any concern about his soul 
while he was gone. He replied that he had, and 
especially on Sunday morning. All this time the 
peddler sat there listening to the story of God's 
goodness to her, he seeing no opportunity to 
show his goods. 

As I saw her simplicity, innocency, and child- 
like confidence in God, I thought, ^^I would 
rather have her humble station in life and her 
knowledge of God than to be the president of our 
nation. ' ' Oh, how we delight to be in the com- 
pany of those who have hearts full of love to 
God and never weary in talking of his righteous- 
ness ! Such conversation bears our souls upward 
and onward and makes us more like God. This 
world fades farther and farther away, and we 
approach nearer and nearer the gates of glory. 

If you desire a closer walk with God, seek 
the companionship of those who are spiritually 
minded and who live where the heavenly breezes 



OR^ WALKS WITH GOD. 65 

blow and where the fragrance of Christian 
graces perfume the air. Oh, that I could help 
the reader to feel in his soul the importance of 
keeping his heart and mind turned heavenward ! 
Oh, that I could help him to see the deep truth 
contained in the following words ! As tobacco- 
users and whiskey-drinkers so deaden their 
sense of taste that they become unable to tell by 
it whether the meat they are eating is beef or 
mutton or whether the jelly is apple or peach; 
so they whose minds are stayed on earthly things 
and whose conversation is of the things of the 
world so benumb their souls that they lose the 
spiritual sense of taste or that delicacy of moral 
perception which enables those who walk with 
God to have such sweet tastes of his love. I 
have seen those who would sit and sleep while 
some one talked of how God hears and answers 
prayer and of how real he is in all the common 
affairs of every-day life, but who as soon as a 
conversation was begun about earthly things 
were wide awake and ready to join in the con- 
versation. Shame on such a professed Chris- 
tianity! 

God has the sweets that tempt the Christian's 
soul. He has those things that delight us and 



66 



THE HIDDEN LIFE I 



lead us on to follow him. He has the word of 
eternal life; he has rest; he has peace; he has 
love; he has all for which our souls pant or 
hunger. Oh, how the Christian's soul clings to 
God! He is its fountain of life. He has the 
sweet viands that delight it and satisfy all 
its longings. Nothing satisfies the Christian's 
heart but God. As the child shrinks back from 
the poisonous reptile, so the Spirit-filled soul 
shrinks back from the world. As your little 
child clings tightly to your hand while you walk 
near the cage of wild beasts, so the Christian 
clings close to God as he sees the allurements of 
this world. 

It is the sweet life of Jesus that fills us with 
such ecstatic joys, such unspeakable glory. A 
thousand deaths would be preferable to separa- 
tion from Christ. The martyr at the stake free- 
ly gives up life; he will not part with Christ. 
Christ is more than life. The martyr's whole 
soul is aflame with the love of God and the flame 
is burning with such intensity and the waters of 
rest are flowing so deeply through his soul 
that he hardly feels the flames that are devour- 
ing his physical being. The glory of God filling 
the soul counteracts pain and makes death bear- 



OR^ WALKS WITH GOD. 67 

able. I am persuaded that Stephen, who saw 
the heavens open, felt but little of the pains of 
death by stoning. One bitter cold night your 
humble servant had fifteen miles to go after 
preaching. The glory of God so filled his soul 
that he felt not the cold; otherwise he would 
have suffered greatly. This was a precious les- 
son and gave valuable knowledge of God. 

He who has tasted of salvation and those 
graces that flow out from God looks over all 
earth, heaven, and hell and says: ^^ These con- 
tain nothing that can separate me from the ob- 
ject of my heart's fond love. The world has its 
trials and tribulations and may pour them out 
with a vengeance upon my head : they shall not 
separate me from God. The distresses, the per- 
secutions, the famines, the nakedness, the perils, 
the sword— though these be brought upon me to 
the limit of their power, they can not move me. 
Hell, with all its threatening horrors, can not 
alarm me. Evil spirits can not seduce nor dis- 
courage my soul. I am lost in the love of God. 
Should the love of angels be turned to jealousy, 
I will cling to Jesus. Nothing in life, nothing in 
death, the height of heaven, nor the depth of 
hell, with all the creatures they contain, shall 



68 THE HIDDEN UFE ; 

be able to separate me from the love of God 
which is in Christ Jesus." Thus sings the soul 
that is drinking at the fountain of heaven's eter- 
nal love. 

The fervent in spirit are fully satisfied with 
their close walk with God to-day, but they want 
a closer walk with him to-morrow. As the hart 
pants after the water brooks, so pant their souls 
after God. This is not the experience of one 
seeking after salvation. It is the experience 
of the saint all along his Christian way. I find 
two classes of religious people that are satisfied, 
or seem to be. Those who are rich in the grace 
of God and full of spiritual life are satisfied. 
They desire more of God ; their souls have appe- 
tite for God and for his word, but they are never 
dissatisfied. It is not hunger for bread that 
makes a man dissatisfied. It is blessed to be- 
come hungry, because it makes the- eating enjoy- 
able. The man that has no appetite is the one 
who does the complaining. He is not satisfied 
with the most delicious foods. The hungry man 
eats with a relish and thanks God for a good ap- 
petite. Do you not often feel your soul thirsting 
after God? Do you not feel heart-hunger for 
prayer and the Word? Do you not feel an eager- 



on, WALKS WITH GOD. 69 

ness to meet with the saints of God? Do you not 
hunger and thirst after righteousness? This 
good appetite is indicative of good spiritual 
health. No appetite for these things is un- 
mistakable evidence of spiritual disease. An- 
other class of religious people who are seeming- 
ly satisfied are those who are poor and naked 
and blind, but who think they are rich and in- 
creased with good and have need of nothing. 
They are like the small boy that danced for joy 
because he imagined himself taking sweetmeats 
from his empty pocket and eating them. Some 
people imagine themselves rich in the grace of 
God and are happy in their imagination. 

The true Christian life is one of constant 
growth in grace. True followers of Christ are 
ever becoming more spiritual. They are draw- 
ing nearer to God. The path of the just is as a 
shining light that shineth more and more unto 
that perfect day. The Spirit of God in the heart 
of man is represented by a fruit-bearing tree. 
The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, gentle- 
ness, long-suffering, goodness, meekness, tem- 
perance, faith, etc. Can these fruits be increased 
in our hearts and life ? There is but one answer 
-They can. All along our Christian journey we 



70 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

are to abound more and more in love; we are 
to grow stronger in faith; our joy is to increase; 
we are to become more meek and humble and 
to have more patience and be more gentle. The 
horticulturist increases the fruit of the trees of 
his orchard by cultivating and developing the 
tree. He cultivates, not the fruit, but the tree. 
The tree in our hearts is the Spirit of God. To 
increase the fruits of the Spirit, we must develop 
the tree. The true and successful Christian life 
is one of constant progress. 

Some people seem to experience some alarm 
when we begin to talk about growth in grace 
or gaining a closer walk with God. They fear 
we will become fanatical. No one is more op- 
posed to fanaticism than the ardent advocates 
of Christian development, for nothing is a 
greater hindrance to such development. But 
facts are facts. We can not but acknowledge 
that the true and proper Christian life is one of 
constant growth. 

Causes produce effects. To become more 
spiritual is the effect of a cause. There is a 
law of growth and development in all life. There 
is also a law governing the law of growth and 
development, or in other words, growth is but 



OK, WAX-KS WITH GOD. 71 

the effect, or the result, of complying with 
certain causes. This is true in both the physical 
and the spiritual life. In order for the child to 
develop its physical life and powers, it must eat, 
drink, exercise, sleep, breathe, etc. It is not 
enough for the child to know and say, ^^I must 
eat and drink, that I may live and grow"; but 
it must put into actual practise what it knows. 
It is true— and how good God is to have made 
us so !— that the child is given an instinct that 
inclines it to eat and to exercise. 

We meet the law of growth naturally and 
without taking thought, because God has given 
us appetites and desires that lead us to the 
performance of the things requisite to giowth. 
I said we naturally and without taking thought 
meet the requirements for growth because God 
has given us appetites that incline us to these 
things; but God has given us intelligence and 
will-power by which he expects us to control 
the appetite to the best good of the physical 
development. Small children do not have this 
intelligence, but the intelligence of the parents 
should answer for the child. The very thing 
God has given us for our development may 
prove the most disastrous to it if it is not kept 



72 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

in proper bounds. He who sits down to his 
table and eats for the mere purpose of satisfy- 
ing his appetite acts brutishly. 

The laws respecting the physical life find an 
analogy in the spiritual life. There is a law of 
growth and development in the spiritual world. 
There is also a law which governs the law of 
growth, or in other words, our growth in grace 
is but the result of our complying with certain 
requisites. Cause produces effect. It is folly 
to expect development in animal life if the law 
governing that development is not observed. It 
is as great folly to expect growth in grace if the 
law governing the growth in grace is not ob- 
served. 

'^As new-born babes, desire the sincere milk 
of the word, that ye may grow thereby. ? ' 1 Pet. 
2: 2. The Greek adds ^'unto salvation." 
Growth unto eternal salvation is the consequence 
of living upon the sincere milk of the word. 
Here is cause and effect. Do not expect the 
effect without the cause. It is at this point that 
some experience alarm. They fear an over- 
exertion. No amount of worry, anxiety, or try- 
ing will promote growth. The child does not 
grow by trying. It does not worry about its 



Oii, WALKS WITH GOD. fS 

growing. But it does eat. I am saying nothing 
more than this here. If yon grow in grace yon 
must eat. An established law declares you must. 
Some teach that we have nothing to do with our 
spiritual development. To prove their asser- 
tion they refer us to the beautiful lesson of the 
gro^^ing of the lily, which neither toils nor spins. 
In the lesson oi the lily Christ is teaching us, not 
about our spiritual development, but about the 
care God has for our temporal life and its 
needs. There is something to do. You must eat. 
' ' But if we are saved, do we not naturally de- 
sire the sincere milk of the word ? " I have said 
nothing to the contrary. I have only said that 
we must desire the sincere milk of the word, 
that we may grow thereby. ' ' But is it not true 
that we sometimes may have a keener appetite 
for the sincere word than at others and a greater 
relish for prayer ^r' Encourage your appetite 
by eating. Select some delicious foods, such 
as these: ""l will never leave thee nor forsake 
thee." ^^Cast thy care upon him, for he careth 
for thee." ^'He is able to keep you from fall- 
ing." '^No man is able to pluck you out of my 
Father's hands." -^'uch foods will revive you 
and whet up your appetite if you are not dead. 



74 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

If YOU have spiritual life, pray even thougii you 
may have no relish for prayer. During the warm 
months of last summer I was accustomed to 
arise at midnight for prayer. One night there 
was a dull, morbid feeling upon me. I wrestled 
with God for some time, but lay down without 
getting any apparent blessing. When I awaked 
in the morning, heaven's gloiy was streaming 
into my soul. I was then reaping the blessing of 
my midnight prayer. "We may pray ofttimes 
and apparently receive very little benefit ; but it 
benefits us more than we are aware. It is our 
Life. If we cease praying, we shall die. Many 
a time I have gone to prayer without any inspir- 
ation for prayer, but soon the inspiration would 
be given. I have gone into the pulpit likewise. 
Regard not the feeling. Keep up the faith 
♦and do your duty. Make it a business to serve 
God. If you would have a closer walk with God, 
keep aloof from the world ; abstain from fleshly 
lusts (they war against the soul) ; avoid the com- 
pany of the foolish talker; stay your thoughts 
on God; meditate on his law; pray much and 
live on the Word; ^'refuse profane and old 
wives' fables"; give no heed to the signs, the 
superstitions, and the foolish sayings of the 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 75 

worldly minded ; have no mind for such things ; 
take no interest and have no part in the neigh- 
borhood gossip, but ' ' exercise thyself rather un- 
to godliness"; attend to the things that will 
make you more godly ; have a conversation and 
have meditations that are edifying; think upon 
the life of Christ; search therein for the excel- 
lencies and the beautiful ; see the purity of his 
love and the tenderness of his care for you un- 
til the affections of your soul, like the mag- 
netized needles, tremble with life and turn to- 
wards their object. The words of a learned 
writer are appropriate here : 

^ ^ It is an admitted principle that protracted 
and close attention always fixes the fact at- 
tended to, deeply in the memory ; and the longer 
and more intensely the mind attends to any sub- 
ject, other subjects portionally lose their power 
to interest. The same is true in relation to the 
affections. The longer and more intensely we 
contemplate an object in that relation which is 
adapted to draw out the affections, the more 
deeply will the impression be made upon the 
heart as well as the memory. The most favor- 
able circumstances possible to fix an impression 
deeply upon the heart and memory are— first, 



76 THE HIDDEN LtJ*£; 

that there should be protracted and earnest at- 
tention ; and second, that at. the same time the 
impression is made, the emotions of the soul 
should be alive with excitement. Without these, 
an impression made upon the heart and the 
memory would be slight and easily effaced; 
while on the contrary, an impression made dur- 
ing mtense attention and excited feeling will be 
engraved, as with a pen of steel upon the tablets 
of the soul." 

On this I will give a brief comment. The 
more attention we give to heavenly things and 
the more intently and eagerly we seek those 
things above, the more our affections are drawn 
out to them, and the things of earth proportion- 
ably lose their power to attract us. The longer 
and more deeply we meditate upon God's law 
and the beauty of his holiness, the more deeply 
the impression will be made upon us and the 
more we shall be like him. The more earnest 
attention we give in comtemplating the love of 
God to us m adopting us as sons ; the more our 
heart is touched by the scene on Calvary; the 
more vivid and real this is made to us,— the 
deeper will be the impression made upon the 
tablets of our soul. beloved, stand before the 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 77 

cross of Calvary and behold the love of Jesus 
for you— dying, dying for you; hear the groans 
of his agony; see the deliverance from hell he 
has wrought for you through his death and un- 
fathomable love. Stand and behold until all the 
emotions of your soul are alive with excitement. 
Stand and behold until the fleshly tables of your 
heart are made so soft and tender that God by 
his Spirt can imprint his love and image there. 
A worldly conversation and worldly thoughts 
and the minding of earthly things harden the 
heart and cast a morbid feeling over the soul, 
making it incapable of receiving any imprint 
from heavenly things. 

Fellow pilgrim to a heavenly home, if you de- 
sire the faith once delivered to the saints, you 
must ^^ earnestly contend" for it. If you desire 
a croT^n of life, you must ^^lay hold" upon it. 
If you desire to run the Christian race success- 
fully, you must ^^lay aside every weight and 
the sin which doth so easily beset you. ' ' If you 
desire to obtain an incorruptible crown, you 
must ^^so run that ye may obtain." Do you 
desire a closer walk with God? then ^'draw 
near to him." Do you desire to gain heaven? 
then have a heart full of purpose and determin- 



78 ' THE HIDDEN LIFE ; 

ation. The apostle said: ^^This one thing I do: 
forgetting *the things which are behind, I reach 
forth nnto those things which are before; I 
press toward the mark for the prize of the high 
calling of God in Christ Jesus." Let ns who 
are in the Christian race ^^be thus minded.'' 

Make it a business to serve God. In him live 
and move and have your being. Make him the 
center. Everything in life should center in 
God. Whatever you do, do to his glory. Live in 
his presence. Pray without ceasing; guard 
against all attacks of the world ; keep a tender 
conscience toward God; walk in the light of 
his countenance; drink of the fountain of life 
daily; cultivate feelings of reverence, devotion, 
and thanksgiving; give no place to anything 
that will dull the finer sensibilities of your soul 
—do these things, and you will be rewarded with 
a closer walk with God. 



Looking at Unseen Things. 

To say that we can look at unseen things may 
sound strange to some. I need not to say it. 
It has been said long ago, and all I need to do is 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 79 

to repeat the words— ^^ While we look not at 
the things which are seen, but at the things 
which are not seen." 2 Cor. 4: 18. Oh, how 
prone man is to look on temporal things and 
fail to see the eternal ! A woman came to Jesns 
as he sat at meat and ponred upon his head a 
very precious ointment. On account of this 
the disciples said with indignation, ^^To what 
purpose is this waste? this ointment might have 
been sold for much and given to the poor." 
TJaey saw only temporal things. 

The apostle Paul was troubled on every side ; 
he was perplexed, persecuted, cast down, and 
bore about in his body the dying of the Lord 
Jesus ; but he did not look upon those afflictions 
which were to be seen ; he looked upon the eter- 
nal gain which these afflictions worked for him, 
but which could not be seen. He saw a mansion 
in glory, and these afflictions only served to sep- 
arate him farther from earthly pleasures and 
gratifications ; crucified him, as it were, to earth- 
ly things and gave him more of the Christ-life 
and a clearer vision of heavenly things. Be- 
loved, your capability to enjoy heaven depends 
upon the stretch your soul is making here. See- 
ing temporal things dims the eye so that we 



80 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

can not see eternal things. Oh, how prone is 
man to look upon his trials and persecutions! 
The apostle did not see his troubles and perse- 
cutions; he saw only the eternal glory these 
things were gaining for him. 

Trials, persecutions, temptations, and such 
things are needful. ^^If need be," says Peter, 
'^ye are in heaviness through manifold tempta- 
tion. ' ' Why are those things needful? Because 
they are the trying of your faith, and your faith 
is increased by being tried. 

I will ask the reader to open his Bible to 1 Pet. 
1 : 6-8 and read, and I pray God to help your soul 
to see and to help me to describe to you the 
wondrous beauty my soul sees in these texts. 
In verse 6 we learn that ^^ heaviness through 
many temptations" is a necessity in the Chris- 
tian life. There is an established law between 
cause and effect. Certain causes produce cer- 
tain effects. These effects may become causes 
to produce other effects. Now, trials and per- 
secutions produce an increase of faith in our 
heart. This we learn from verse 7. This in- 
crease is more precious than gold. Ofttimes it 
is very difficult for Christians to see the worth 
of a trial. They can scq th^ Y§l\^e of gold, but 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 81 

they can not see the valne of a trial. They look 
on things temporal, and not on things eternal. 
Trials increase your faith, and the result of hav- 
ing your faith increased is told ns in verse 8. 
Jesus you have not seen, but now by faith you 
look upon that which is not seen, and you love 
him ; and by believing in him whom you see not, 
or by an eye of faith making him real unto 
you, ^'ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full 
of glory/' ' 

To enable you to comprehend more fully the 
real worth of trials, I will give you an illustra- 
tion. I do not wish you to become visionary, 
but allow me to ask you to imagine yourself, 
for a moment, to be in heaven. Before you 
stands a large pair of balances. In one end of 
the balances is a saint, who has come up from 
zie earth and is now crowned in heaven. In the 
other end is a bright object, which we will call 
glory. Now, the heavier the glory in the one 
end, the higher will the saint in the other rise 
in joy, blessedness, and happiness. Every trial, 
persecution, and affliction that the saint had on 
earth added more weight to that object of ^^ eter- 
nal glory, ' ' and he rises correspondingly higher 
in the felicity of his Savior. 



82 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

This is the true effect of trials. But alas 
for the poor man who lives by sight, and not 
by faith; who looks upon things seen, and not 
upon things unseen. Get your eyes away from 
your trials, and looking above, see them work- 
ing for you an exceeding and eternal weight of 
glory. Oh, how light a thing is a trial com- 
pared with the ^^ weight of glory" that the trial 
effects for us ! Never was there such an effect 
produced by so light a thing. To what can we 
compare it? All comparisons fall infinitely short 
of conveying to our mind the wonderful pro- 
duct of a ^4ight affliction." Think of a mo- 
ment's being expanded into an eternity, and you 
will have some conception of the true weight 
of the glory that is the result of a trial. 

I must here tell you of a sister's dream. This 
sister was in deep trial, and she was not brac- 
ing up under it as she should. She had almost 
cast away her confidence and was sinking into 
despair. One night she dreamed that a de- 
parted saint had returned from the glory-world 
and was talking with her. This heavenly visitor 
was telling the sister of the saints of their 
acquaintance who, having died, were in heaven. 
She named them one after one. Then she said 



OB^ WALKS WITH GOD. 83 

she saw the crowns awaiting the saints that were 
yet on the earth. She noticed that whenever a 
saint on earth was in deep trial and he did not 
cast away his confidence, bnt passed through 
the trial triumphantly, a jewel was added to his 
crown, and it shone with a greater brightness, 
and the angels rejoiced. She noticed also that 
when a saint on earth did cast away his confi- 
dence and despaired in time of trial, a gem 
dropped out of his crown, the whole crown 
turned black, and the angels wept. This dream 
became a powerful stimulus to this sister in the 
hour of trial, and I trust, dear reader, it will 
be the same to you. 

Look not upon temporal, or temporary, things, 
but upon things eternal. Look more upon your 
mansion in heaven than you do upon your home 
on earth. By faith make heaven real. If some 
loved one dies in Christ, do not see them in 
the grave, but see them in heaven, and sorrow 
not. Do not look upon death, but see the glory 
that lies beyond. It is far better to depart 
and be with Christ than to live in this world. 
Those who think it better to stay here than to 
depart and be with Christ do not see enough of 
heaven. Their eyes are too dim. Their souls 



84 



THE HIDDEN LIFE; 



are not full of love for Jesus. What would we 
think of a man that lived in a small, decaying, 
and ill-convenient house, when just over the 
river he possessed a good, large, comfortable 
home, with all modern conveniences, where he 
would be far happier? If he would prefer to 
live in his old, rickety home, you would con- 
clude that he did not comprehend what gre*"'*: 
comfort and happiness he would have in his 
new home. Those who would rather stay here 
merely for their own pleasure do not see eternal 
things as they should. Christ is too dim to 
them. He is not real enough. 

The flesh and earthly things dim the eye to 
eternal things. Saints should not do penance 
as the Romanists do, but they should practise 
self-denial. They should ' ' crucify the flesh, with 
its affections and lusts." They should keep their 
bodies under and bring them into subjection. 
After Moses had fasted forty days, his face 
shone with heaven's glor5\ Fasting is prac- 
tised that we might get nearer God. Wliatever 
God allows for the body can be indulged in to 
the spiritual development of the soul, but what- 
ever is excessive is a lust of the flesh and clouds 
the windows of the soul. 



OB, WALKS WITH GOD. 85 

The less we see of earth, the more we can see 
of heaven. Those who are too mindful of earth- 
ly things do not see the glory of heavenly things. 
Martha did not see Jesus as Mary saw him. If 
you see your mansion in heaven as Paul saw his 
(see 2 Cor. 5:2) and as you should see yours, 
you will labor far more zealously to lay up 
treasures there than you will to lay them up 
on earth. Your mind will be much more upon 
heavenly things than upon earthly things. Learn 
to look upon things not seen. Look at earthly 
things but little. The more you enjoy of heaven 
herej the more you will enjoy over there. Then 
let your soul out to embrace all you can of God. 
Look not on the pleasures of earth ; look not on 
the trials of life; but turn the vision of your 
soul heavenward and contemplate its glories by 
day i""? night. Do these things and that upper, 
brigkAt Vrorld will grow dearer to your heart as 
you -^-^^ nearer to it. 



Bright Pictures. 



The memory may ofttimes bear you back 
thro^^^h the past days of your life and set pic- 



86 



THE HIDDEN LIFE; 



tures before your mind's eye. This may be for 
your good or it may not be. It is according to 
the nature of the scene you are viewing. Some 
things of the past you should forget. Some 
pictures you should tear down from memory's 
wall and cast them into the deep abyss of for- 
getfulness. 

One day I entered a sick-chamber and saw 
at once discouragement written upon the coun- 
tenance of the afllicted sister. She began to tell 
me of the afflictions she had had for many years. 
One disease after another had laid its torturing 
hand upon her body. .There was hardly a fiber 
of her physical being but had experienced se- 
verest pain. ' ' And how, ' ' she said, ' ' I see noth- 
ing but pain and suffering, through all my future 
days." I talked with her and showed her that 
she had been looking upon the dark pictures of 
the past. ^^Here," I said, ^^you saw trials and 
here temptations and here pain and suffering. 
These dark pictures which you have allowed 
Satan to hang upon memory's wall have cast 
a dark, gloomy shadow down your future path- 
way, and you see nothing but suffering and pain 
and dark days. ' ' I then asked her if she remem- 
bered certain blessings she had enjoyed in the 



OE^ WALKS WITH GOD. 87 

past— if she remembered when God healed her 
of consumption and what glory filled her soul; 
if she remembered how precious God was to 
her at such a time. ^ ' And don 't you see, ' ' I con- 
tinued, ^^that, although you are now suffering 
from an attack of la grippe, your general 
health is far better than it was in former years. ' ' 
She saw that this was true; and as she began 
to look upon those bright pictures, behold, that 
cast a bright beam down her future walk, and 
her soul was filled with hope and cheer. 

Remember this : The pictures you are viewing 
cast a shadow before them. Satan is in the 
picture business. So also is Jesus. Satan's 
pictures, being dark and gloomy, will cast a 
shadow over your life if you look upon them. 
But bright are the pictures that Christ presents 
to view. They will cheer you, make sunny all 
your way. Be careful where you look. 

I recently read in a child's paper a beautiful 
story that is so appropriate here I must ask the 
privilege of relating it. It was as follows : Two 
little girls that lived in the city went to visit 
their aunt living in the country. The next day 
after their arrival these little girls went for a 
walk in the garden. Soon one came back wear- 



88 



THE HIDDEN LIFE; 



ing a disappointed expression on her face. She 
said, '^0 Auntie, those rose-bushes have such 
ugly thorns on them ! ' ' The other, coming in a 
little later with joyous, brightened countenance, 
exclaimed, '^0 Auntie, those thorn-bushes have 
such beautiful roses on them ! ' ' We leave you 
to find and to be benefited by the moral. 



Abounding Grace. 

Wide open is the way to heaven's throne of 
grace. Every needy soul on earth can have ac- 
cess to that throne by day or by night. The gate 
is never closed. Come boldly, therefore, to that 
throne. There you will find grace to strengthen 
and to help you in every needy hour. Grace 
will sweeten every affliction. weary one, do 
you believe it? Is it really so to you? It may 
be so. It will lighten every burden of your life ; 
it will cast a beautiful light along your path- 
way and tinge every shadow with a mellow ra- 
diance, as the golden sunset gilds the fleecy 
cloud. 

Lay hold, weary one, upon the throne of 
grace by faith and be transported into an atmos- 
phere of light and love, of peace and hope. 
Rich particles of glory can be drawn down to 



OB, WALKS WITH GOD. 89 

your soul that will lighten up your pathway and 
enable you to be blessedly contented in every 
circumstance of life, patient in every affliction, 
and faithful to perform every duty; that wilL 
put a modesty and meekness into your every 
action, a cheerfulness into your countenance, a 
reverence and devotion into your spirit, a sweet- 
ness into every expression, and throw about you 
such an attractive luster, as will make you a 
blessing everywhere you go. Bow humbly and 
dependently before the throne of grace; there 
in earnest, fervent prayer bring down strength 
and blessings that will elevate your soul and 
make you more a creature of heaven than of 
earth. Grace ennobles the character and puts 
into the being a spiritual tone that allies you 
more to angels than to unregenorate men. 

At the throne of grace you can wave the palm 
of victory; there you can sway over sin, sick- 
ness, Satan, and the world a conqueror's scep- 
ter; there you can sing the song of triumph in 
the sweetest melody; theio you can trample 
every foe beneath your feet; there you can de- 
feat every lust of the flesh that wars against the 
soul; there you can be crowned a prince and 
king; there you can turn your back upon every 



90 



THE HIDDEN LIFE; 



dark picture and see only the bright side of 
things ; there yon can look by faith down your 
journey of life and see green fields, shady 
nooks, rippling streams, blooming flowers, and 
bright sunny days; there by faith you can see 
Jesus at the right hand of God and your eternal 
mansion of glory. This is not the flight of im- 
agination, nor the excitement of sentimentalism; 
it is blessedly real. Come boldly to the throne 
of grace. 



What to Do in Case of Failure. 



You love Jesus, and your very heart longs to 
do something for him. You see his great love 
to you, and it arouses your soul to spend every 
moment of your life for him. Nothing is too 
hard for you to do. Any suffering that would 
bring glory to his name you would gladly under- 
go. Oh, how sweet to suffer for his sake ! How 
blessed to sacrifice for him! How joyous to toil 
in service to his glory ! But your heart is some- 
times made sad by failures. You meant to do 
something for Jesus, but you failed. You are 
not sad for your sake, but for his sake. You 



OB, WALKS WITH GOD. 91 

think he cares and now what shall you do? 
Perhaps no life is wholly free from failures. 
Ofttimes we fail to accomplish what we had 
hoped to do. 

When a child fails to accomplish something 
it has undertaken for a parent and then comes 
with its innocent tale of sorrow, the parent's 
heart is awakened to greater and more tender 
pity and love. You send your little child for an 
arm-load of wood, and it goes gladly and lov- 
ingly. As it is bearing the load back, you see 
it fall. Love and pity awaken in your heart, and 
you run quickly and gather up child, wood, and 
all. When you see the bruised flesh upon the 
little one, the tears start and you say, ^^Poor 
little darling ! you received this bruise in trying 
to serve me." Remember, dear child of God, 
that Jesus feels toward you, when you fail in 
your loving and willing service for him, just as 
you feel toward your child. The bruises you 
receive in your service endears you to him. 

Some of Christ's little ones once attempted 
to do something for him, but failed. A man 
had an afflicted son. This son the man took to 
some of Jesus' disciples that they might cure 
him. In Jesus ' name they attempted to do this, 



92 THE HIDDEK LIFE; 

but they failed. Then they went to Jesus and 
asked why they could not cast out the evil spirit. 
That was a wise thing to do. In your failures 
do not sit and weep and decide you will never 
attempt to do anything again. Go to Jesus and 
ask him why you failed. He will explain the 
whole matter and encourage you to try again, 
and will tell you just how you can succeed the 
next time. It is good to take everything to 
Jesus and learn how before you attempt to do it. 
Failures would be far less common. But do the 
best we can, there will be some failures. But, 
through our failures, Jesus can teach us to do 
some things that we could not otherwise learn 
to do. 



Humility. 

mortal man, ^'what does the Lord thy God 
require of thee, but to do justly, and to love 
mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God." 
Micah 6: 8. '^Humble thyself to walk with God'' 
is the marginal reading. man, wouldst thou 
walk with that high and lofty One who inhab- 
iteth eternity, whose name is Holy, who dwell- 



OE, WALKS WITH GOD. 93 

eth in a high and holy place? Wonldst thon have 
him dwell with thee? He dwells with him who 
is of a contrite arid humble spirit. See Isa. 57 : 
15. "We all want God to dwell with us ; we want 
a closer walk with him. He walks only with the 
humble. The more humble we are, the closer 
will be our walk with him. Since this is true, 
we feel like learning all we can about this grace 
which God so much admires, so that we may pos- 
sess more of its power and beauty in our hearts. 
The pure and holy life of Jesus was one con- 
stant exhibition of humility. In the great plan 
of salvation by grace is purposed and provided 
that the divine character be implanted in the 
character of man. Jesus would have us to wear 
the grace of humility in our hearts ; therefore he 
says, ^^Come, learn of me; for I am meek and 
lowly at heart. ' ' Come, dear reader, and let us 
sit down at the feet of Jesus while he teaches us 
a lesson in humility. Oh, how eager we are to 
learn ! What joy fills our hearts as we gather 
at his feet and look up into his face with souls 
that are longing to receive more of his lowliness ! 
Jesus has two ways of teaching us anything he 
would have us know— one is by telling us about 
it, and the other is by showing it to us in his 



94 



THE HIDDEN LIFE; 



own life. The Bible is the book that teaches us 
of the words and the life of Jesus, and to this 
blessed book we will go. 

That we may be more humble, more perfectly 
imitate our gracious Redeemer in this holy tem- 
per of the soul, we will in this lesson have three 
points of consideration; namely, I. What is 
humility? II. The blessedness of being humble. 
III. HoTT to be more humble. 

I. To be more humble we must first learn what 
humility is. We have before said that the Bible 
is the book which teaches us of the divine graces 
and perfections ; so to this book we go to learn 
more about this adorable grace. We soon learn 
that this holy quality is more frequently com- 
mended than any other and that we are more 
urgently enjoined to wear it on our own hearts. 
Humility is not a grace distinct from the other 
graces, but it makes up a large portion of them 
and is inseparable, from them. In the human 
character and in the Christian religion there is 
no virtue nor excellence but is highly imbued 
with this grace. It is the foundation and the 
crown of all moral excellence. No virtue can 
truly be virtue unless it bears the stamp of 
humility, and no temper of the soul is truly 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 95 

perfect till it is defecated by being immersed 
in this grace. Humility is the parent and nurse 
of all the holy qualities in the Christian char- 
acter. 

All can have this grace. It is not suited to 
the lowest condition of life only, but those who 
move in the loftiest circles can have it. It is not 
a grace that degrades, but a grace that exalts. 
Oh, what a sweet, pure grace it is ! It is wholly 
free from self and from all that is impure, sens- 
ual, or devilish. It is heavenly in its nature. It 
is not a grace that lifts man up to be great in 
his own opinion ; on the contrary, it enables him 
to be contented to be little. 

Humility is not opposed to high attainments 
in intellectuality, or cultivation of the mental 
powers, but it does overthrow the wisdom of 
the world. By this we mean that the unlearned 
can know God through this grace and that the 
learned can know God in no other way. This 
world does not know God by wisdom. Though 
man may have all the wisdom of this world, yet 
in order for him to know God, he must lay it 
aside (in the sense of its aiding him to compre- 
hend God) and come as if he knew nothing. 
Education and high mental powers can be used 



96 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

by the spirit of humility, but they must be thor- 
oughly purged from all self-dependence and be 
brought to see that the wisdom of the world is 
foolishness with God. 

Humility is the opposite of pride. It is low- 
liness. It is that grace which enables us to have 
faith in God. How can they have faith who are 
lifted up with pride? It is that grace which 
keeps love burning in our hearts. We can never 
see how much God loves us and how great is his 
goodness unless we see how dependent we are 
upon him ; consequently we can not love him as 
we should unless we are truly humble. It is 
humility that helps us to be patient amid the 
trying scenes of life. Without humility there is 
no true rest of soul, no true contentment of 
mind, no true happiness of heart. 

Humility is the most beautiful of the beati- 
tudes. The glittering diamonds of earth are 
not to be compared with the beauty of lowliness. 
Those who love the things of earth have a strong 
desire to be adorned with pearls and diamonds. 
Those who love God have a great desire to have 
their hearts adorned with a meek and quiet 
spirit. Oh, how their souls yearn after more of 
the meekness and lowliness of the Savior ! The 



OR^ WALKS WITH GOD. 97 

worldly-minded want the adornings rich and 
gay, that they may be admired by the world. 
The Christian desires the grace of humility to 
adorn his heart, because that grace is precious 
in the sight of God. Let us pray earnestly for 
God to teach us more about humility and to help 
us to be more like Jesus in this sweet grace. 
He will hear and answer prayer in his own way, 
and his way is best. 

But to have more of this grace, we must learn 
more about what true humility is in its nature. 
The spirit of humility will help us to form a just 
estimate of ourselves. Humility will make us 
more severe in judging ourselves than in judg- 
ing others. We may learn something more of 
humility by contrasting it a little farther with 
its opposite. Pride is a most inconsistent prin- 
ciple. It often acts contrary to itself. Humility 
never does this. How many things the proud 
are doing which they have no delight in ! They 
please others for the sake of being praised. With 
the humble this it not true. Here is a very good 
test of humility. Some one accomplishes what 
you have undertaken and failed in, or some one 
is praised for certain virtues and acquirements 
in which you think you are well advanced. To 



98 



illustrate : Suppose you think you are a man of 
much prayer. You think that if you do excel 
others in anything, it is in being prayerful. So 
when others are referred to in your presence 
as being the more prayerful, it tries your humil- 
ity. Pride will put a man into a ditch if he 
thinks he will there gain notice. Remember, 
the humble loves the lowest place. Not only do 
they love the lowest place, but they even love to 
have this fact unknown. 

Humility hides from view. It does not hide 
from the view of others so much as it does 
from one 's own self. Others see the humility of 
the humble person more plainly than he sees 
it. Humility seeks to hide virtues in oneself 
rather than to make them known. The humble 
man, though he have great faith, does not see 
he has such great faith. Though he may be 
greatly gifted in many ways, yet he does not see 
his gifts. It seems to him that he is excelled 
by all others. Not only does humility hide the 
other Christian graces from the gaze of self, but 
it hides itself also. A humble man does not 
see his humility. He esteems others better than 
himself. He sees the good that is in others, but 
does not see their faults; but he sees his own 



■ 



OB^ WALKS WITH GOD. 99 

faults rather than his good qualities. To make 
this plainer, we would say that a humble man 
who may have much faith but little patience sees 
his little patience rather than his greater faith ; 
while in his brother who has great patience and 
but little faith he sees the much patience, but 
does not see the weak faith; consequently he 
esteems others better than himself. 

The word translated humility occurs only 
about seven times in the New Testament. In 
Eph. 4 : 2 it is rendered lowliness ; in Phil. 2 : 3 
it is rendered lowliness of mind; in 1 Pet. 5: 5 
it is translated humility. By this we learn that 
lowliness and humility are synonomous terms; 
and we shall use them as such in this chapter. 
Meekness is not perfectly synonomous with hu- 
mility and lowliness ; it is rather an immediate 
fruit of them, but many times it can be used to 
express lowliness. Meekness is to humility what 
the tree is to the root, and humility is to meek- 
ness what the root is to the tree. Each is de- 
pendent upon the other; especially is the tree 
dependent upon the root. Meekness is that grace 
which enables us not only to receive injuries 
without having any feeling of revenge, but to 
have a desire to do good to those who are re- 

l.tFC 



100 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

sponsible for the injuries. Humility is that 
grace which enables ns, in onr relationship to 
God, to see onr nothingness and nnworthiness 
to receive anything else than mistreatment ; con- 
sequently when it comes, we receive it without 
any feeling of revenge, because we see, in the 
first place, that we are unworthy of any good. 

God loves humility. A meek, lowly, quiet 
spirit is precious in his sight. He dwells with 
the lowly, and gives grace to the humble. Our 
Savior said: ^^ Whosoever shall exalt himself 
shall be abased, and he that shall humble him- 
self shall be exalted. ' ' Humility is the only way 
to exaltation, but bear this ever in mind : humil- 
ity does not seek to be humble for the &ake of 
exaltation. Humility seeks to be humble for 
no other reason than to be humble. How beau- 
tiful! To be self-emptied is the fundamental 
preparation for the infilling of grace and glory. 

Since we are learning from Jesus something 
of humility, let us hear what he may say rela- 
tively to this grace. ^^Wliosoever therefore shall 
humble himself as this little child, the same is 
greatest in the kingdom of heaven." Mat. 18: 
4. The disciples had come asking the shameful 
question, *^Who is the greatest in the kingdom 



Dti, wal:&s with god. lOl 

of heaven r' Jesus answered them in the above 
words. He who willingly is the least, the same 
is the greatest ; but he who becomes the least for 
the purpose of being the greatest is hypocritical 
and proud. Jesus said to his disciples on an- 
other occasion, ^^ Whosoever will be great among 
:you, let him be your minister; and whosoever 
will be chief among you, let him be your ser- 
vant. ' ' Mat. 20 : 26, 27. Again, on beholding the 
pride and the hypocrisy of the scribes and the 
Pharisees, Jesus said to his disciples: ^^ Neither 
be ye called masters; for one is your Master, 
even Christ. But he that is greatest among you 
shall be your servant. And whosoever shall 
exalt himself shall be abased ; and he that shall 
humble himself shall be exalted. ' ' Mat. 23 : 10-12. 
The humble man is the great man. Humility 
is a great thing. The smaller a man is in his 
own estimation, the greater he is. A man shows 
his greatness by showing his littleness; conse- 
quently he who shows himself to be the smallest 
shows himself to be greatest. This is very 
simple, yet it is hard for many to learn. Oh! 
why will mortal man be proud? Wliy will this 
poor, fallen creature think himself to be some- 
thing? God, in looking down upon him, says, 



102 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

^^Thou worm"; but man in his self-esteem rises 
and says, ' ' I am no worm ; I am a man. ' ' 

There are three prominent features in God's 
great kingdom of love and righteousness, and 
these are symbolized by three ordinances. The 
entrance into the kingdom of God is through 
death and resurrection, which is symbolized by 
baptism. Baptism is administered but once, 
because we are supposed to enter the kingdom 
but once. Spiritual life in the kingdom of God 
is maintained by living upon Christ; by eating 
of that bread which came down from heaven. 
This constant feeding upon Christ is symbolized 
by the ordinance of the Lord's Supper. This or- 
dinance must be kept continuously, because we 
are constantly living upon Christ. In the king- 
dom of God we take the place of a servant to- 
ward each other. This place of humble servi- 
tude is symbolized by the ordinance of feet- 
washing. This ordinance is not to be observed 
just once, like baptism, but continuously, be- 
cause we are ever the servants of one another. 
How blessed and beautiful ! It thrills my soul 
with admiration. How wondrous is God's sal- 
vation ! and how holy is he ! 

The writers of the epistles speak of humility 



OU, WALKS WITH GOD. 103 

in language similar to the language of Jesus. 
Paul said, ^^In honor preferring one another." 
Rom. 12: 10. Do not seek to be the greatest; 
do not seek for highest honors; but seek the 
lowest place and prefer that your brother have 
the honor. This text Conybeare and Howson 
render thus : ^ ^ In honor let each set his neighbor 
above himself. ' ' It reads as follows in Rother- 
ham's translation: ^'In honor outdoing one an- 
other." The word rendered prefer means ^'to 
take the lead ' ' in being nothing. ^ ^ Be ambitious 
to be unambitious." Outdo each other in being 
humble and show this by preferring that others 
have all the honor. Some have grace enough to 
be willing that honors be given to another if 
they themselves can have equal honors; but to 
the truly humble such grace is given as enables 
them to secretly desire all the honor to be given 
to others. Is this your experience? Suppose 
that in company with three other brethren you 
went to pray for a man dying of consumption. 
The man was healed instantly and in a few days 
was a well and strong man. Some one, in telling 
of this wonderful healing, told who the other 
brethren were that prayed for the dying man, 
but failed to mention you. An account of the 



104 THE HiDDEK IJ^E ; 

healing appeared in the paper, giving the nameS 
of the other brethren that were present and 
prayed, but omitting your name. Would you 
secretly rejoice ? Would you be really and truly 
glad if it should never come to the ears or minds 
of any one that you too were present and prayed 
for the man? my brother, if you are humble, 
you will rejoice to be unknown and unnoticed. 
At one time two brethren made a visit to some 
sisters. Several beautiful songs were sung by 
the sisters. Finally one of the brethren sang a 
very inspiring hymn. There was, however, but 
little comment upon the hymn. After the lapse 
of a few moments the brother asked whether 
any of the company had ever heard that hymn 
before. The reply was that they had not. He 
then told them that the Lord had given him that 
song down in the rural districts of one of the 
Southern States. The point for the brother to 
examine closely is, Did he desire to magnify the 
Lord, and the Lord alone? or, did he have a 
secret desire to let the company know that he 
was the composer? Self has a desire to be set 
forward, an itching to be noticed. The apostle 
John would have said, ^^The Lord gave a dis- 
ciple that song to his own glory.'' How beau- 



bn, WALKS WITH GOD. 105 

tiful a grace is humility! Self sometimes gets 
so cunning as to seek applause by seeming to 
shun it. 

The apostle Paul says, ^^Let nothing be done 
through strife or vainglory. " Phil. 2 : 3. Do not 
seek a reputation. Allow me to quote again 
from Conybeare and Howson: ^'Do nothing in 
a spirit of intrigue or vanity. ' ' I will take time 
and space to make explanation of this text, be- 
lieving as I do that it will be to the reader's 
edification. In chapter 1 : 16 we learn that some 
preached Christ of contention (or ''in a spirit 
of intrigue," say Conybeare and Hojvson), not 
sincerely, supposing to add affliction to Paul's 
bonds. See verse 18. ^^ Whether in pretense or 
in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do 
rejoice and will rejoice." These Judaizing 
' teachers, since Paul had been imprisoned, began 
to teach Christ, supposing that he was like them- 
selves—seeking his own glory— and that there- 
fore if they would begin to preach Christ, he 
would grow envious and fear lest he himself 
should lose some glory. So they preached in a 
^'spirit of intrigue." But he was not seeking 
his own glory, and therefore so far as he was 
concerned, he could rejoice no matter who 



106 THE HIDDEN Lli'Il ; 

preached Christ. This is the true spirit of hurail- 
ity. ^^Let nothing be done to lift np self and to 
put another down, but in lowliness of mind let 
each esteem other better than themselves." I 
know of no text that teaches humility more 
forcibly and' beautifully than this does. ^'But 
in lowliness of mind let each account others 
above himself." '^But in your lowliness of mind 
esteeming one another superior to yourselves. ' ' 
Alas ! how few are actuated fully and at all times 
by this spirit ! It is advised that every reader 
look closely into his own heart as he slowly 
turns in the light of this truth. 

How prone is man to see the faults and defects 
of others more readily than his own! How 
clearly he can see every little wrong his brother 
does ! but he fails to see his own. He goes to 
visit a distant family. He hears the man speak 
a little unkindly to his wife. How quickly he 
notices it! He thinks it is bad indeed that a 
man should speak so unkindly to the one whom 
he has promised to love and to cherish through 
life. But when he gets home, he fails to see 
the same fault in himself. Things look worse 
and can be seen more readily in others than in 
himself. With the humble man this is the op- 



on, WALKS WITH GOD. 107 

posite. He sees Ms own faults more readily 
than the faults of others. Defects look greater 
in him than they do in others ; therefore he con- 
siders others superior to himself. In his lowli- 
ness of mind he regards others above himself. 
He meets many who can sing, pray, and preach 
much better than he can. When a man thinks 
he is more spiritual than any one else, he is the 
least spiritual. 

The apostle Peter says, ^^All of you be sub- 
ject one to another, and be clothed with humil- 
ity; for God resisteth the proud, and giveth 
grace to the humble. Humble yourself there- 
fore under the mighty hand of God, that he 
may exalt you in due time. ' ' 1 Pet. 5 : 5, 6. 

You will remember that we are learning some- 
thing of humility from the teaching of Jesus 
and of the apostles. We have not referred to 
every text that hints at humility, but only to 
the principal ones. How worthless is everything 
that is not pervaded by deep humility! Only 
this is of any worth in God's sight. For poor, 
weak man to think himself to be something, how 
shameful this is and how abominable in the 
sight of all heaven ! The words of Peter, ' ' Be 
clothed with humility, ' ' are deep and far reach- 



iOS THE HibDEN Li:^E ; 

ing. Rotherham renders them, ^'Lowliness of 
mind girding on." Literally, they are, ^^Tie 
on with a fast knot." We can often know a 
man by his clothes. Clothing is only an outward 
covering, but in this text it expresses the in- 
ward condition. ' ' Gird on lowliness of mind. ' ' 
^^Be clothed with humility"— over all the acts 
of life throw a covering of humility; as if to 
hide them from the gaze of man. It is that 
hideous monster Pride, that dark-visaged enemy 
of purity and peace, which seeks to set self for- 
ward and to call attention of others to one's 
own good deeds. God, deliver man from 
this artful foe. 

Let humility run through your whole life and 
pervade every act and thought. Humble your- 
self, empty yourself of self before God, and let 
him be all in all. Are you afraid you will suffer 
some loss if you cast the pure, white robe of 
humility over the whole of your conduct and 
hide your good qualities and gifts and good 
deeds from the gaze of others? It is only self 
that can by this suffer loss. Humility suffers 
no loss nor experiences no regret from being 
unnoticed and unknown. The humblest man is 
the happiest. 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 109 

Humility is more than that sinking down into 
nothingness before God while in prayer. It is 
that which flows out from us in our every-day 
conduct as we mingle with others. That in your 
silent chamber before the awful and august pre- 
sence of God you feel yourself sunken out of 
sight, is not full proof of humility. When you 
go out among men and are made a blessing to 
some and they begin to give you praise, then 
it is that the real tests come. If you would know 
the true state of your heart, watch its feelings 
and behavior along the common course of every- 
day life. Some one has used these weighty 
words : 

^ ' Pride must die in you, or nothing of heaven 
can live in you. Under the banner of the truth 
give yourself up to the meek and humble spirit 
of the holy Jesus. Humility must sow the seed, 
or there can be no reaping in heaven. Look not 
at pride only as an unbecoming temper nor at 
humility only as a decent virtue ; for the one is 
death and the other is life; the one is hell, the 
other is heaven. So much as you have of pride 
within you, you have of the fallen angel alive in 
you. So much as you have of true humility, so 
much you have of the Lamb of God within you. 



110 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

Could you see what every stirring of pride does 
to your soul, you would beg of everyone you 
meet to tear the viper from you, though with 
the loss of a hand or an eye. Could you see 
what a sweet transforming power there is in 
humility, how it expels the poison and makes 
room for the Spirit of God to live in you, you 
would rather wish to be the footstool of all the 
world than to want the smallest degree of it." 

Beloved fellow pilgrim, let us examine the 
true state of our hearts in the light of a few 
scriptural texts. ^'Mind not high things, but 
condescend to men of low estate. ' ' Rom. 12 : 16. 
This text the Revised Version renders in these 
deep words : '^ Set not your mind on high things, 
but condescend to things that are lowly. ' ' Have 
no aspirations for high positions in life. If 
your calling in life is a low one, be content. 
Seek nothing higher from any self-interest. A 
humble man takes the lowest seat and is so con- 
tented that he is not looking for a higher one. 
He who takes a low seat with the hope of being 
invited up and daily looks for it is a miserable 
man. 

*'Be not wise in your own conceit." Do not 
think yourself to be anything more than an or- 



OB, WALKS WITH GOD. Ill 

dinary man. It was the proud Pharisee that 
said, ^^I thank God I am not as other men." 
Do not get such a cultivated nicety and such a 
lofty opinion of yourself that others seem to 
come a little short of yourself. A man of my 
acquaintance began to have a favorable opinion 
of himself as being cultured, meek, patient, and 
humble. A circumstance suddenly occuring one 
day affected him to such an extent as to show 
him that he was greatly deficient in patience and 
humility. Some conceit was taken out of him. 
^^Love vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up." 
1 Cor. 13: 4. Love and humility go hand in 
hand. It is through love we are to be servants 
one of another. ^'^Walk worthy of the vocation 
wherewith ye are called, with all lowliness and 
meekness. ' ' Eph. 4 : 2. Plod along in your life 's 
vocation quietly and contentedly, envying no 
man. The little word all gives this great depth 
of meaning. ^^All lowliness" signifies perfect 
freedom from any wish that your lot in life be 
any other than that in which God has placed 
you. It means perfect contentment. ' ' All meek- 
ness" means perfect freedom from any desire 
for revenge and from any spirit of retaliation— 
a perfect forbearance. It is a patience so deep 



112 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

that no trial nor vexing thing can get to the 
bottom of it. A humble man feels no envy. 
Others may rise high<3r and higher in social life, 
but he plods on sweetly contented with his lowly 
station. 

Man can not of himself be humble. Such is 
our helplessness. It is true we are commanded 
to humble ourselves. So are we commanded to 
repent and to have faith, but we are dependent 
upon the Spirit of God that we may keep these 
commands. It is only by the aid of the Holy 
Spirit that we can humble ourselves. We can 
have true inward feelings of humility only as 
they are given by the Spirit of God. Last even- 
ing while I was in secret devotion, there came 
into my heart such a sense of nothingness as to 
seem to blot me out of existence. As sometimes 
you have seen a vapor pass away until not the 
least trace of it could be seen, so I seemed to 
fade away and vanish out of sight. It was 
sweet as heaven to me. It was the Spirit of God 
that gave me such a vision of myself. I saw, 
too, how awfully vile, sinful, and corrupt I 
would be without the atonement of Christ. 

Humility of heart will find expression in the 
life. The apostle John does not speak of him- 



OB, WALKS WITH GOD. 113 

self. He says ^^that other disciple." Matthew 
does not tell us that he was rich and that he 
made a great feast for Christ. It is one of the 
other evangelists that tells ns that. Matthew 
simply tells ns what was done as Jesus sat at 
meat, but does not hint at who it was that gave 
the entertainment. The acts of the humble are 
always such as will attract the least attention 
to self. I am not passing judgment upon the 
motive of a certain sister, but her conduct on a 
certain occasion will help me to illustrate to 
you more clearly how true humility behaves it- 
self. We sat at her table. There were nine of 
us. She had prepared nine pieces of meat from 
some wild game. She took up the platter con- 
taining the delicious meat, and looking it over, 
remarked, ^ ^ There is only a piece for each one, 
and I will take the most inferior piece." It 
would have been more consistent with the spirit 
of humility to have taken the most inferior piece 
without saying a word. 

A certain brother had a nice apple, which he 
was preparing to eat. The apple was mellow 
upon one side, but harder upon the other. As 
he was about to begin eating the apple, a little 
child came up and begged a piece. The tempta- 



114 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

tion came at first to cut off a portion from the 
hard side of the apple, but resisting the tempta- 
tion, he gave the little girl a part from the mel- 
low side. No one knew of this act but Him who 
knows all things. The truly humble choose the 
inferior things for themselves without calling 
attention to it. True humility will manifest itself 
daily in home life. Those who are humble will 
choose the poorest and leave the best for the 
others of the family. 

By what has been said you understand some- 
thing of what humility is in actual experience. 
Now we come to our second point of considera- 
tion. 

11. The blessedness of being humble. God 
walks with the humble. What heart could crave 
a richer blessing? ^^My presence shall go with 
thee, and I will give thee rest." Thus, to walk 
with God in humbleness is to have fulness of 
rest. If you would be happy and full of rest 
you must be humble. Listen to these words of 
the Savior, and I trust they may fall upon your 
heart in their full weight and in all the strength 
of their beauty : ' ' Take my yoke upon you, and 
learn of me ; for I am meek and lowly : and ye 
shall find rest to vour souls. ' ' Rest is the result 



OE, WALKS WITH GOD. 115 

of being lowly. Alas ! how few have found the 
precious secret! The more humble a man is, 
the sweeter, richer, and deeper is his rest; and 
the prouder he is, the more wretched is his state. 
Sweet, tranquil rest fills the heart and life of 
the truly humble. The world may scoff at you, 
but your rest of soul is not disturbed. All 
around you may be praised and honored and you 
neglected, but your soul rests on. Blessed ex- 
perience, indeed! 

Grod gives grace to the humble. Therefore the 
more lowly a man is, the more grace he has. 
Grace, like water, fills up the lowest places. 
Suppose you have two cups each ten inches 
deep. These cups are connected by a small tube. 
The tube enters one cup two inches from the 
top and the other two inches from the bottom. 
To have the pipe running level, you understand 
it would make one cup six inches higher than the 
other. Now, if there is an opening in this tube 
midway between the cups and you begin to pour 
water in this opening, the water will run both 
ways. But soon the water in one cup rises to 
the tube, and then all the water you pour in will 
flow into the other cup. Christian hearts are 
all bound together by the golden pipe of salva- 



116 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

tion. This pipe enters the heart at the surface 
of the humility. If you have but one inch of 
humility in the bottom of your heart and your 
brethren have ten, then as God pours grace and 
glory into the golden pipe, your heart soon is 
filled ; then it all flows into other hearts that are 
more lowly. If you desire more grace and glory, 
you must humble yourself; because God gives 
grace to the humble. 

'^Blessed are the meek; for they shall inherit 
the earth." The earth is the Lord's, and its 
fulness. The meek and lowly have God for their 
Father; consequently they are heirs to this 
world— to all they daily need of it. This is one 
blessing belonging to the humble. They inherit 
the earth. By this is meant that God who owns 
the earth and all in it will supply every need, 
or give to the truly humble every temporal 
blessing needed. Those who become a little 
anxious and somewhat disturbed because every 
temporal blessing is not in sight are not as 
humble as they should be; consequently faith 
in God is hindered. I desire to make every point 
comprehensive; and the best manner in which 
to do this is by illustration. Suppose I was to 
go to a place to hold a meeting. Now, if the 



OU, WALKS WITH GOi). 117 

congregation at that place did not give me of 
their means to meet my present necessities and 
I should become anxious and restless, it would 
be because I was not as humble before God 
as I should be. To humble ourselves under the 
mighty hand of God includes not only a con- 
sciousness of our dependence upon God, but also 
the rest of faith and trust in him. God's humble 
child shall never want. ^ ' They shall eat in plenty 
and be satisfied. ' ' When the grace of humility 
adorns the heart, God is well pleased, and he 
keeps that heart full of rest. ' ' The Lord lif teth 
up the meek. ' ' 

Lei us read Psa. 147: 4-6: ^^He telleth the 
number of the stars; he calleth them all by 
their names. Great is our Lord, and of great 
power: his understanding is infinite. The Lord 
liftetb up the meek." This is wonderful. The 
same thought is expressed here as in Isa. 40: 
26-29. The very greatness of God's power that 
is called into operation in creating and sustain- 
ing the material universe is called into operation 
in lifting up and sustaining the meek. The 
heavens may fall and worlds melt away, but God 
will never suffer his humble child to stumble and 
fall. Tt is blessed to be humble. My heart daily 



118 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

seeks for more of this satisfying grace. My 
soul has tasted of it and prays and longs for 
more. As the hart pants after the water brooks, 
so my soul pants after more humility. It is not 
a restless, anxious, dissatisfied craving, but a 
sweet, satisfied longing. The meek are exhorted 
to seek meekness. See Zeph. 2: 3. The very 
meekest can yet attain to greater meekness, and 
consequently our joy and blessedness can ever 
be increasing. 

We will make a few quotations from the Holy 
Bible. These we ask you to meditate upon until 
your soul tastes of the sweetness they contain. 
' ' The meek shall eat and be satisfied. ' ' Psa. 22 : 
26. Is it not blessed to be fully satisfied; to 
want nothing; to have full and perfect rest of 
soul? Such is the happy state of the truly hum- 
ble. Not only shall they have food for the body 
and be satisfied therewith, but they shall have 
food for the soul until it delights itself in fat- 
ness. 

^^The meek will he guide in judgment, and the 
meek will he teach his way." Psa. 25: 9. If 
this declaration does not awaken in your soul 
an intense desire to become more meek, it must 
be sleeping the sleep of death. The ways of God 



OK^ WALKS WITH GOD. 119 

are peaceful, pleasant, happy ways. There is no 
sorrow there, no darkness. All is hopeful and 
bright. The humble shall walk there and shall 
hear the voice of their God. His ways are higher, 
much higher, than man's ways; but those who 
will humble themselves, he will exalt to walk 
in his ways. Alas! how few in these days of 
iniquity and cold formality know the right ways 
of the Lord ! Thank God ! there are a few who 
know— and blessed is that people! 

^^The meek shall inherit the earth; and shall 
delight themselves in the abundance of peace. ' ^ 
Psa. 37: 11. When you have meditated upon 
this text a full hour, you will then begin to 
comprehend only a little of its depth of mean- 
ing. Have you an abundance of peace? Many 
who thought they had an abundance of peace 
found, when the tests and trials came, that their 
peace was very shallow. One who testified of 
being so full of peace lost all his peace when the 
trial came. Some day (for such days do come) 
when everything seems to go wrong, then do you 
delight yourself in the abundance of peace ? If 
you do not, you need more meekness; for the 
promise is that the meek shall delight them- 
selves in the abundance of peace. 



120 



'' The Lord lif teth up the meek. " '' The meek 
also shall increase their joy in the Lord." Isa. 
29 : 19. Oh, how these words thrill our- inner 
being! No harm can ever come to one of God's 
humble ones, for he lifts them above every evil. 
We set sail upon the ocean of life in sweet as- 
surance of safety. We do not know what storms 
may rise along the way. We do not know how 
high the billows may dash, nor what may inter- 
pose ; but this we know : if we keep humble, God 
will lift us high over all, and our joy shall be 
increased. Since it is so blessed to be humble, 
all our hearts are longing for more humility; 
therefore we will now consider our third point. 

III. How to become more humble. To the 
obtaining of more humility, there are at least 
four requisites; namely, 1. Being conscious of 
one's need of more. 2. A comprehension of 
the true worth of this grace. 3. Having a 
strong desire to obtain more. 4. Earnestly 
seeking after it. 

1. The first thing necessary for the obtaining 
01 more humility is to be conscious of your need 
of more. You can not attain to more if you do 
not feel your need of more. You must feel 



OK, WALKS WITH GOD. 121 

your need so deeply that your soul will cry unto 
God for more ; then God will give it : no soul was 
ever denied its holy desires when pleaded for 
in earnestness. Examine your experience in the 
light of God's word. Examine your meekness 
beside the meekness of Jesus until you deeply 
feel the need of more. If one fails to be con- 
scious of any need of more, it would be folly 
to seek for more. No one can seek with sufficient 
earnestness to find unless deeply conscious of 
the need. In order for us to receive anything 
from God, our souls must plead from a full con- 
sciousness of need. Remember this, my dear 
Christian reader: I am not writing on this 
subject merely to entertain you ; I desire to ben- 
efit you in your own soul 's experience. Lay this 
book down now and look into your heart and 
life to see how much need you have of being 
more humble ; and may the Spirit of God aid in 
the research. Take plenty of time. Many peo- 
ple fail to get full help from God because they 
do not take time enough. 

2. A comprehension of the true worth of this 
grace. After you have discovered that you are 
/lot as humble as you need to be, than you should 
see something of the beauty and the true worth 



122 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

of humility. If a man should see that he needed 
more, but should not see the great benefit and 
blessing it would be to him, he would not strive 
for it. Let this sweet grace therefore become a 
pearl of great price to your soul. 

I must repeat something I have said before. 
Take time to see the excellence of humility. 
Nothing else is hindering Christians to-day 
from making spiritual advancement as is their 
not taking enough time to do so. The artist 
stands before the scene to be painted till his 
whole soul is aflame with admiration of its 
beauty. If he is going to paint a sunset, he must 
see its beauties and its glories. These glories 
he must view with such admiration that they get 
into his own soul; and then he can pour them 
from his own soul into his painting. Let me 
say, too, that the skilled artist sees glories in 
the sunset that are hidden from the unpractised 
eye. If you would see the beauty and the ex- 
cellence of humility, you must tarry before Him 
who shines forth this grace in its light and 
strength, until your soul is filled with admira- 
tion of its beauty. It is only then that you can 
get humility into your own heart and show it 
forth in your life. Those who tarry long at the 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 123 

feet of Jesus see beauties in his sweet life and 
excellencies in his character that unpractised 
eyes never see. 

3. Having a strong desire to obtain more. 
You must feel your need of humility and see the 
beauty of it until your souls longs for more of 
it. There must be longing. As your physical 
being thrists for water, so your soul must thirst 
for God. Some one wrote these beautiful lines : 

"God loves to be longed for, loves to be sought, 

For he sought us himself with such longing and love. 
He died for desire of us— marvelous thought! 

And he yearns for us now to be with him above. ' ' 

Some have considered 'desire as something un- 
important. They seem to think it bespeaks a 
state of discontent, of uneasiness, or of unrest. 
Not so. There is a blessedness in having strong 
desire for more of God. 

*'0f all the myriad moods of mind 

That through the soul come thronging, 
Which one was e'er so dear, so kind, 
So beautiful as longing?'' 

The student that has no thirst for knowledge 
finds no joy in seeking knowledge ; but the stu- 



124 THE HIDDEK LTI^fi } 

dent that desires knowledge seeks for it with 
joy. Ah! with what delight he bends to his 
task! As long as he has mind-hunger, so long 
will he continue in search of knowledge and ever 
will be gaining and happy and contented in such 
knowledge. Should this mind-hunger cease, then 
this mental growth is at an end. The same is 
true in spiritual things. If there is no hunger 
of soul for more meekness, then more meekness 
will never be gained. When soul-hunger ceases, 
spiritual development is at an end. Longing 
is not unrest. It is not anxiety. The sinner's 
soul is in unrest, and he longs for rest. The 
Christian's soul is full of rest, but he longs for 
calmer rest; his soul is full of peace, but he 
desires sweeter peace; his heart is full of con- 
tentment, but he desires deeper contentment. 
It is not a bitter cry of anguish nor of dis- 
appointment; but it is the tender, passionate 
yearning of a loving heart for a sweeter, fuller, 
richer, deeper, experience in the meekness and 
lowliness of Jesus. But it is not enough to have 
strong desire. 

4. Earnestly seeking after it. The student 
may have a thirst for knowledge ; but if he does 
not seek for it, he will never gain it. ' ' Seek ye 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 125 

the Lord ; all ye meek of the earth, which have 
wrought his jndgmeBts; seek righteousness; 
seek meekness." Zeph. 2:3. Here is where 
many fail. They long for more of God, to be 
more kind, to be more meek and patient; but 
they do not make the effort to obtain more. In 
order to obtain the pearl of great price, the 
man sold all he had and bought the field contain- 
ing the pearl. You desire to become more meek, 
but you are not willing to take time that you 
might obtain it. The temporal duties of life are 
demanding all your time. As you go about your 
daily duties, you sigh for more of God. Long- 
ing is not sighing. 

''I will not waste one breath of life in sighing. 
For other ends has life "been given to me— 
Duties and pure devotion daily rising 
Into a higher, better life with thee, 
My God, with thee." 

Gazing into heaven will not make you more 
like Jesus. Sitting down and longing will never 
gain the goal. The man at the base of the cliff 
may wish he were at the top, but mere wishing 
will not take him there. We must have desire, 
but our desire must lead to service. Deny self 
for the good of others. Pray for others mpre 



126 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

than for yourself. Be patient under every pro- 
vocation and affiction. Look not on your '4ight 
afflictions, ' ' but keep God 's glory in view. Keep 
seeing more of God in everything and less of 
self. Do not have regard for self. Beloved, it 
is possible for you to become so humble and 
heavenly minded that you hardly seem to dwell 
in the body. Going out from your presence will 
be a peculiar influence that others will feel and 
will look on you with wonder. They will not 
understand you. To them you will seem to live 
more and to dwell rather in the spiritual than 
in the natural world. 

' ^ Oh. to be emptier, lowlier. 

Mean, unnoticed, and unknown, 
And to God a vessel holier, 

±^illed with Clirist. and Christ alone!" 



The Rest of Faith. 

Best signifies quietness, tranquilness, happi- 
ness ; not to be agitated by fear ; not to be anx- 
ious : but to be full of peace and repose. There 
is a rest for God's people. There is a freedom 
from all fear, from all anxiety, from every care ; 
there is a tranquilness. a quietness^ a fulness 



OR^ WALKS WITH GOD. 127 

of rest,— for the follower of Jesus. Man knew 
no fear in the days of his primitive purity. 
Anxiety, fear, care, trouble, discontent, dis- 
quietude, unrest, etc., found no place in his 
nature. These words and all synonomous ones 
were coined since man fell from his primeval 
purity. After he fell into sin, then unrest, dis- 
content, uneasiness, trouble, etc., took possession 
of his being, and he was most wretched. He 
was said to be ^ ' full of trouble ' ' and to be like 
the troubled sea that casts up mire and dirt. 
He sought rest, but found none. 

After man's disgraceful fall a prophecy was 
spoken— ^^ The sceptre shall not depart from 
Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, 
until Shiloh come ; and unto him shall the gath- 
ering of the people be." Gen. 49: 10. Shiloh 
signifies Peacemaker, the Procurer of our hap- 
piness, the Rest-giver. It has reference to 
Jesus. On the night when this Rest-giver was 
born a multitude of the angelic host shouted, 
^^ Peace on earth, good-will to man." Jesus 
speaks to the troubled, sin-ladened heart of 
man, saying, ^^Come unto me, all ye that labor 
and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 
Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for 



128 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

I am meek and lowly of heart: and ye shall 
find rest unto your soul. ' ' Thus speaks the 
Rest-giver of prophecy. No one had ever be- 
fore offered rest to the heavy-hearted soul of 
man ; but Christ came to give him rest. ^ ' There 
remaineth therefore a rest to the people of 
God." Christ is this rest. As he is the way, 
the truth, and the life; so he is the rest. But 
how shall we enter into his rest? ^^We which 
have believed do enter into rest. ' ' Heb. 4:3. It 
is not that they shall in some future day or age 
enter into rest, but they do enter into rest. 
Praise God ! This rest is the rest of faith. In 
Jesus we enjoy the holy Sabbath of which the 
Jewish Sabbath was a type. Oh, glorious rest 
of the soul ! The blood-washed throng take up 
the angels' glad refrain and shout over land 
and sea, ' ^ Glory to God in the highest, on earth 
peace, good-will toward man." 

There is full and perfect rest in Jesus for 
every soul. This rest is a holy quietness in 
him. It is freedom from all petulance, murmur- 
ing, or agitation. Christ erases sin (the seat of 
all unrest) from the soul and establishes there 
his own righteousness, the work of which ' ' shall 



OB, WALKS WITH GOD. 129 

be peace, and the effect . . . quietness and as- 
surance forever." 

Water may be disturbed by something work- 
ing in its depths, or it may be agitated by some 
exterior force. The water will not reflect your 
image if it is troubled, neither does an agitated 
soul reflect the image of Jesus. Doubts are de- 
structive of rest. Faith in the promises of 
God brings rest. The world may frown upon 
you ; man may speak ill of you ; riches may flee 
away and poverty stare you in the face like an 
angry wolf; friends may forsake you; saints 
may misunderstand you ; but faith in the prom- 
ise, ^^I will never leave thee nor forsake thee," 
will keep the soul sweetly at rest. If it were 
man that gave rest, then man could destroy rest. 
If it were riches that gave rest, then poverty 
would bring unrest. If it were circumstances 
that gave rest, then circumstances could destroy 
rest. If it were this world that gave rest in 
any sense, it could in some sense disturb rest. 
But it is Jesus who gives rest to the Christian 
heart; and there is naught on earth that can 
destroy that rest. How sweet to trust fully in 
God and be at rest! Oh, the completeness of 
perfect rest in God ! 



130 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

Blessed is the man that has entered into rest. 
Truly, the Christian life is the most tranquil, 
peaceful, and restful that mortal can find. The 
human family is traveling across a sea which is 
called the Sea of Life. Some are sailing one 
way and some another. The only successful and 
happy way is the Christian way. That way is 
full of rest; it is quietness in every storm; amid 
every turmoil it is sweet, calm repose. 



Talkativeness. 



**Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not 
thine heart be hasty to utter anything [word, 
margin] before God: for God is in heaven and 
thou upon the earth : therefore let thy words 
be few.'' Eccl. 5: 2. Too much talking is very 
destructive to spirituality. Many people won- 
der why they do not have a closer walk with 
God. With some it is because they talk too 
much. It is surprising to note how much worth- 
less talk there is in the world to-day. 

How many think they must keep constantly 
talking to be entertaining! They do not know 
the power and the beauty of silence. Hearts 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 131 

communing in silence exert a power and in- 
fluence over each other. Our musings are trans- 
mitted to other hearts. Ofttimes when my wife 
and I have been driving along some quiet coun- 
try road or have been sitting in the quiet of our 
home, she has spoken of the very thing on 
which I was meditating. Often the thoughts of 
our hearts exert a more powerful influence over 
the hearts and the minds of our companions 
than would our words. 

It is true that words fitly spoken are like 
apples of gold in pictures of silver ; but unless 
fitly spoken, they become most unsightly, de- 
grading, and ruinous. The most beautiful thing 
in its place often becomes the most unsightly 
thing when out of place. Let your words be 
few and well chosen. ^^In a multitude of words 
there wanteth not sin." In that ceaseless prattle 
there is an awful waste of real soul-energy. The 
odor of a rose confined in a room is very per- 
ceptible anjd delightful but in open air it would 
soon be spent. Words that are gathered in 
hours of silence, burst forth in strength and 
beauty; but where there is a constant flowing 
of speech, the words run down into weakness. 
Alas! how much shallowness there is in much 



132 



of the present-day conversation ! I do not mean 
among the unregenerate only, but among Chris- 
tians as well. One word seasoned with grace 
is worth far more than a thousand graceless 
ones. Make your words palatable by putting in 
much seasoning. 

There is so much to do in these days, by way 
of visiting and talking to others, so much writ- 
ing to be done, and so much preaching needed, 
that, to some, hours spent in silence may seem 
to be a great waste. It is not if the heart's 
musing is on proper themes. The ministry of 
Jesus was a short and busy one, yet he found 
much time to be alone. He would go apart into 
the desert and the mountain and there in deep 
communings in the Spirit he would compress 
within his inner being a holy unction that would 
burst forth upon the ears and hearts of his 
hearers in such weight that they would say, 
^^ Never man spake like this man." Elijah was 
left alone by the brook Kidron. We may think 
this was a waste of time. Paul was shut up in 
prison, but there he gathered force of words 
that speak to this day. If you would bring 
flowers to others, you must go into the valley 
to gather them. To converse with others with- 



• 



bU, Walks wW?h goD. 133 

out first having gathered in your closet vital 
force into your own inner being, is like trying 
to feed hungry mouths from an empty basket. 
To give out in excessive talk more than the soul 
has gathered in its silent communings, is a 
waste of vital force and will bring a decline in 
spirituality, just as the muscle is "weakened by 
being too severely exercised. 

Let your speech be always seasoned with 
grace. Talk not seasoned with grace is as in- 
sipid as food without salt. Our words should 
be so seasoned with grace that they would assist 
others into a more heavenly frame of spirit. 
It is in the closet that we take on a store of 
seasoning grace. More time is required to do 
the seasoning than to do the serving. In other 
words, more time should be spent in secret 
prayer, in deep meditation and thoughtful read- 
ing, than in mingling and conversing. A useful 
man of God one time said he had learned that 
about an hour was as long as he could spend 
in conversation to profit. If you talk more 
than you pray, your words will run beyond the 
point of seasoning and be graceless. 

Satan, in all probability, will tell you that 
time spent in reading the Bible, in silent medi- 



134 THE HIDDEN LIFfi ; 

tation, or in secret prayer, is time misspent. 
He will endeavor to persuade yon that you have 
no time for these. He would send you out in 
great haste to feed others from an empty basket. 
Be careful of your words. See that every one 
is seasoned with grace. Unless they are, they 
are wasted words. The unction of the Spirit 
upon your soul is obtained and retained by read- 
ing or in prayer and meditation. You should 
linger in the closet until this unction is com- 
pressed to the utmost capacity of your soul. It 
will impart force to your words. The preacher 
that does but little praying may use great, 
swelling words ; but he is only a sounding brass. 
Let your words be few. Man shall give account 
for every idle word. Be careful how you spend 
the silent hours. If you spend them in idle 
dreaming or lazily, you will not be fit to go out 
among men. You will only go empty handed. 
Improve the silent moments and gather to your 
soul a bountiful store of grace; then go out 
and pour it upon the hearts of others. 

ye saints, avoid multiplicity of words. Some 
may count you dull and stupid, but it is better 
that the world should call us stupid than that 
God should count us graceless. Speak only such 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 135 

words as are good ^Ho the use of edifying, that 
it [they] may minister grace unto the hear- 
ers." In relating past experiences, be careful 
that it is done to edification, and not just to 
please. Be willing to listen rather than to 
speak. If a man does not bridle his tongue, 
his religion is vain. Some one has said, ^ ' Speech 
is silver; silence is golden." Let your words 
and your thoughts be such as will invite and 
encourage the Spirit of God to rest upon you 
and as will keep in your soul an uninterrupted 
sense of the divine presence. This was said of 
a man who enjoyed a walk and communion with 
God attained by but few: 

^^It was his constant care to keep a deep 
sense of God's presence. In order to this he 
was slow of speech, and had the exacted gov- 
ernment of his words. To this he was so in- 
wardly attentive, as sometimes to appear stupid 
to those who knew him not; though few con- 
versed in a more lively manner when he judged 
it would be for the glory of God. It was his 
continual endeavor to draw up his own and 
every other spirit to an immediate intercourse 
with God; and all his intercourse with me was 
so mingled with prayer and praise that every 



136 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

employment and every meal was as it were per- 
fumed therewith. He often said: ^It is a very 
little thing so to hang upon God by faith as 
to feel no departure from him. But I want to 
be filled with the fulness of his Spirit. I feel,' 
said he, ^sometimes such gleams of light, as 
it were wafts of heavenly air, as seems ready 
to take my soul with them to glory.' " 

Another said of this same devoted man: '^I 
was intimately acquainted with him for above 
thirt^^ years. I conversed with him morning, 
noon, and evening without the least reserve dur- 
ing a journey of many hundred miles, and in 
all that time I never heard him speak one im- 
proper word, nor saw him do an improper ac- 
tion. Many exemplary itien have I known holy 
in heart and life, but one equal to him I have 
not known— one so inwardly and outwardly de- 
voted to God. So unblamable a character in 
every respect, I have not found either in Europe 
or in America; nor do I expect to find another 
such this side of eternity. ' ' 

It is our privilege to live as near God as did 
this man or any other, but in order to do so we 
must have the same constant care, guard our 
words, and live in an atmosphere that is wafted 
fresh from the perfumed fields of heaven. 



OB^ WALKS WITH GOD. 13? 

The Christian's Triumph. 

Man originally belonged to God. He was 
created that lie might serve and glorify his 
Creator. But he shamefully sold himself and 
became the wretched slave of sin and Satan. 
Oh, deplorable state of man! Oh, such abject, 
wretched slavery ! ground down beneath the ty- 
rant 's iron heel; led captive by lust and forced 
to do many things that the better part of their 
nature told them was degrading and shameful. 
The diabolical spirits in the black land of torture 
and torment were in a glee. They fed in a glut- 
tonous manner upon the pains and sufferings of 
man. They bound their captives with chains 
of iron and tortured them upon every side. In 
their pain men cried unto God, and he in his 
love and tender mercy promised to send them 
a Savior, a strong One to deliver them. 

Of all the creatures in the entire universe of 
God none was able to deliver man from the 
iron grasp of sin but God's only Son. He is 
man's only hope. If he fails, there remains 
nothing but weeping and wailing, anguish and 
torture, in the blackness of darkness forever. 
Is he able, lost and ruined race— is that Christ 



138 



able to deliver us ? We hear a voice come ring- 
ing down through the dim vista of years, say- 
ing, '^He is mighty to save and strong to de- 
liver." Grlory to his name! 

O Son of God, our only hope, 

All rest, O Christ, on thee; 
Thou canst break the fettering bars 

And set us captives free. 

Christ has come to ^^bind up the broken- 
hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and 
to open the prisons to them that are bound." 
And ^^now thanks be unto God, which always 
causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh 
manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in 
every place." 2 Cor. 2: 14. This text is more 
correctly and consequently much more beauti- 
fully rendered by Conybeare and Howson: 
^'But thanks be to God, who leads me on from 
place to place in the train of his triumph, to 
celebrate his victory over the enemies of Christ, 
and by me sends forth the knowledge of him, 
a stream of fragrant incense throughout the 
world. " 

The meaning of the foregoing scripture is 
not so much that we triumph by Christ, but that 
Christ triumphs in us. He came to judge and 



OR^ WALKS WITH GOD. 139 

to make war. He came to do battle with sin, 
deg^th, and hell. I was a captive to these powers ; 
but Christ made war with them and delivered 
me, and now I stand forth as a trophy of 
Christ's. Glory to his name now and forever! 
The American Indians, when victorious in bat- 
tle, would scalp the slain of the enemy and 
would bear those scalps as a trophy about the 
streets of their village to celebrate their victory. 
As a Christian, Christ has rescued me from the 
hand of the enemy, and he bears me aloft in his 
triumphal march. The Christian is raised up to 
a heavenly place and is led on through life as 
a trophy of Christ's. 

Look what a picture! All ye saints of God 
robed in fine linen, clean and white, having the 
harps of God and singing the song of Moses 
and the Lamb, forming one grand and mighty 
procession to celebrate the victory of Christ 
over sin, Satan, and the grave. Thank God! I 
am in the procession ^'with my shining gar- 
ments on." Every one rescued from sin is a 
trophy which Christ bears to the bosom of the 
Father. They were Satan's captivity, but 
Christ leads '^captivity captive." The Chris- 
tian is the spoil gathered by Christ in the con- 



140 THE HIDDEN LIFE J 

flict with Satan. Not only does the Christian 
triumph over the world and over sin, bnt he is 
a signal of Christ's victory over the same. It is 
a twofold triumph. 

Picture to yourself a victorious general with 
his army and captives. They march in one mag- 
nificent, triumphal procession through the city, 
bearing aloft the captives as a signal of their 
victory. Such is the mighty host of Christians 
Christ leads on through life in one grand, tri- 
umphal procession. The victorious general, as 
he marches with his rescued host through the 
city, burns incense and sends forth a sweet fra- 
grance everywhere. The sweet, verdant graces 
from the fields of heaven are implanted in the 
Christian's heart, where they bud and blossom 
and send forth a mighty stream of fragrance 
throughout the world. 

In the natural world, however, we do not find 
anything that forms a perfect analogy for things 
in the spiritual world. The victorious general 
with his captives represents only in part 
Christ's triumphal march through this world 
with his captives. They become his willing ser- 
vants. They engage in the battle against the 
enemy from whom they were delivered. Christ 



I 



OR^ WALKS WITH GOD. 141 

is with his saints, strengthening them in battle. 
He gives them power over the enemy. When 
they triumph, Christ triumphs ; and when they 
cease to triumph, Christ ceases to triumph. It 
is no small thing for a Christian to ground his 
arms and surrender to the enemy. It does not 
end with himself. I pray God to stamp this 
deeply upon the heart of every Christian's 
heart. Every time you suffer defeat, Christ 
suffers defeat. You are to show to this world 
that Christ does reign and triumph over sin. 
Christ makes a display of you; he bears you 
aloft to show to this world his victory over the 
enemy. Oh! how does Jesus feel when you 
suffer defeat either by getting into sin or by 
letting down the shield of faith? 

Beloved, Christ can cause us always to tri- 
umph. I pray God to help every saint to fully 
understand this. Some one asked, ^^Is it ex- 
pected that man always have up the shield of 
faith and always have the victory?" Yes; I 
know men and women that have lield up the 
shield of faith and kept the victory continuously 
for years. It is no small thing to lay down 
the shield of faith and give the battle over. 
The angels rejoice when a soul is saved, but they 



142 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

weep when a soul is deieated. You who are 
unstable and so often casting away your confi- 
dence, if you could but fully know the effect of 
such upon Christ and the angels, you surely 
would put forth a greater effort, you would 
contend more earnestly. Remember that when 
you cast away your confidence in God and his 
word, you are dishonoring him. Do you not love 
Jesus? Has he not died for you? Does it not 
grieve you to dishonor him? Beloved, keep 
the victory, not so much for your own sake as 
for Jesus ' sake. 



Thy Will Be Done. 

The life that is fully abandoned to the will of 
God is the sweetest, purest, and most heaven- 
admired life on earth. Oh, how blessed to be 
able to speak out of the heart and say '^thy 
will be done"! God can fold us to himself only 
as we yield to him. Sometimes you sing, ''Fold 
me closer. Lord, to thee. ' ' God replies, ' ' Yield 
more fully, child, to me." Some follow Jesus 
until the way grows rough and full of dangers. 
Peter said he would follow the Lord ; but when 
the crucifixion stared him in the face, he drew 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 143 

back. There may be many others like him to- 
day. They often reason in this manner: ^^If 
God loves me, he would not have me suffer; 
therefore this way of danger and hardship and 
suffering is not God's way, consequently I will 
not take it." Many to-day would be enjoying 
a sweeter nearness to God if they had been 
more willing to endure the hardness and had not 
drawn back from the toil and suffering. Oh, 
how sweet to suffer for Jesus! I know God 
loves you. He loved his only begotten Son, but 
what did he call him to suffer, and that for 
your sake? and now is it too much that he should 
call you to suffer for the sake of others? 

Look upon the sufferings of Jesus. In the 
midst of his deepest sufferings he never charged 
the Father with a lack of love, but meekly bowed 
and said, ^^Thy will, not mine, be done." To 
step out of self and look toils, hunger, perils, 
aarkness, trials, and persecutions in the face 
and say, ^^Thy will be done," binds God's lov- 
ing heart to you. Oh, to have such intense love 
to God as enables us to count the deepest suf- 
fering, for him a blessing, is a sweet experi- 
ence. To be wholly abandoned to the will of 
God is indeed heaven here. When such intense 



144 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

desire fills our soul for God's will to be done in 
us and with ns that any suffering which would 
glorify him would be a relief, then we can begin 
to say from the heart. "Thy will be done in us 
as it is in heaven." How blessed! How heav- 
enly to launch out upon the stream of time and 
say in our hearts: "Lord, direct my bark of 
life whithersoever thou wilt. All is in thy 
hands. I am fully thine. Cause my little bark 
to turn at the slightest pressure of thy will. 
God. thy will is all I care to know and do. It 
is my life : my only pleasure is in doing thy 
will'" 

I one day was in deep trial. 

Satan heavy blows did wield. 
Fiery darts were thickly flying. 

1 had almost dropped my shield. 

Still more desperate grew the struggle. 
Darkness reigned instead of day; 

Then I heard my Savior whisper, 
''Will you let me have my way? 

''All the dross 1 would discover 
And the gold 1 woula refine." 

Then I humbly oowed and whispered, 
' ' Lord, thy \n lQ ue done, not mine. ^ ' 



145 



Now my heart is full of gladness; 

iNothmg can disturb my rest, 
8ince I've learned that Jesus loves 

And for me does always best. 

Tnough the winds blow wild and dreary 
And ciark storm-clouds o'er me spread, 

They will burst when God commands them. 
Drop rich blessings on my head. 

Though the gloom and mists may gather 
And dark feelings o'er me stray, 

When I come into God's presence. 
All the darkness flees away. 

When the way of life grows weary 
And it seems I have no friend. 

It is then my Savior whispers, 
^'I'U be with thee to the end." 

'Tis not only of Christ's blessings 

I would willingly partake, 
But I'll drink the cup of suff'ring 

For my blessed Savior's sake. 

vVhen in pain and loss and sorrow, 

'Tis so plainly now I see. 
Since T know my Savior better. 

That these things work good to me. 

1 wiU doubt him never, never ; 

In the billows rough and wild. 
In the deepest sorest trial, 

J will be his trusting child. 



146 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

When the shadows deepen round me, 
Shutting out the light of day, 

m my heart I'll softly whisper, 
' * Jesus, have thy own sweet way. ' ' 

Till I reach the golden sunset, 
This shall be my constant plea: 
*'As thy will is done in heaven. 
Let it, Lord, be done in me.'' 



Wanting Nothing. 

The little bird that wings the air 
Is wholly free from ev'ry care; 

And so am I. 
The Lord unto my pray'r gives heed, 
My ev 'ry want and ev 'ry need 

He does supply. 

The Lord my shepherd is to-day. 

He guards and guides me all the way— 

I'm fully blest, 
upon his arm I trusting lean, 
]N aught in this world my soul can wean 

Prom this sweet rest. 

We are living in a world of sin, sorrow, and 
care. Snch is the condition of poor, fallen, sin- 
ful man. But Jesus has come to save us from 
sin and consequently from sorrow. The angels 



OR, WAI.KS WITH GOD. 147 

said on the night when Jesus was bom, ^ ' Glory 
to God in the highest, on earth peace, good- 
will toward men." Many hearts are heavy 
laden. Jesus says, ' ' Come, and I will give you 
rest." Many a one is finding the path of life 
rough and weary. Christ will make it easy. He 
will make all the rough places smooth. Many 
in their sins are wishing they had never been 
born. The saint is praising God because he has 
been '^born again." He is happy in redeeming 
grace; he craves nothing of this world; he re- 
joices always; he is ever contented; he lives 
above want. 

One of old time said, ' ' The Lord is my shep- 
herd ; I shall not want. ' ' This is the Christian 's 
song. He can sing it with the understanding. 
Those who are in want, those who are not satis- 
fied, are not availing themselves of all their 
privileges in Christ Jesus. God is not unto 
them all he longs to be. Christ is the good 
shepherd ; he pares for the precious lambs of his 
fold ; he carries the weak ones in his bosom ; he 
leads them beside the still waters and into quiet 
resting-places. Blessed be his name! Jesus 
is the burden-bearer. He says, '^Cast all your 
caj*e on me 5 I will bear them all for thee. ' ^ We 



148 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

should be wholly free from care. To be free 
from care is to have no anxieties ; to take no 
thought for the morrow ; to be careful for noth- 
ing; to have no fear that has any torment; to 
have no fret nor worry. It is to lean wholly 
upon the Lord; to trust him for everything for 
all time; to have complete. and satisfactory rest. 
' ' Oh, fear the Lord, ye his saints ; for there is no 
want to them that fear him. ' ' Psa. 34 : 9. The 
fear of God dispels all anxieties and brings con- 
fidence and rest. 

If you value your Christian prosperity and a 
close walk with God, see to it that you keep free 
from the cares of this world. Just as the weeds 
hinder the growth of the plants in your garden, 
so the cares of this life hinder the growth of the 
word and grace of God in your heart. I will tell 
you a beautiful story and one full of meaning. 
A great many years ago there lived in a pleasant 
and quiet village two sisters and a brother. 
They had the pleasure at one time of entertain- 
ing in their humble home a very distinguished 
person. The sisters were very unlike in general 
disposition. One of them seemed to be much 
burdened with the cares of the world and was 
cumbered about much serving. She was very 



on, WALKS WITH GOD. 149 

desirous that their guest should be bountifully 
provided for in a temporal way. She came to 
him one day with a complaint against her sister. 
She said, .^^Lord, dost thou not care that my 
sister hath left me to serve alone? Bid her 
therefore that she help me. '^ Jesus (for he was 
that guest) said to her, ^^ Martha! Martha! thou 
art careful and troubled about many things : but 
one thing is needful ; and Mary hath chosen that 
good part, which shall not be taken away from 
her. ' ' The beautiful lesson taught is to be not 
troubled and anxious about what to eat or wear. 
If we have a few things, they will suffice. There 
is something better. If we choose that good 
part, we shall find we need but few of the tem- 
poral things. 

Th(jse who cumber themselves with the cares 
of this life and give themselves much concern 
about the temporal things have certainly neg- 
lected that good part. To have much concern 
about the temporal things is very destructive 
to spirituality. Saints need to be watchful, or 
they will have too much concern about the tem- 
poral things. It might be for your good if you 
woulr* make a test to see where your mind is 
most To-morrow begin to set down in one 



150 1?HE HIDDEN LIFE; 

column all the thoughts and all the words you 
have about the temporal things of life. In an- 
other column set down all the words and all the 
thoughts you have about spiritual things. In 
the evening foot up both columns and see how 
they balance. You may be somewhat surprised. 
When your crop or your business is failing, 
do you lean restfuUy on the arm of Jesus, or 
have you anxieties? 

Living above want is to have no anxieties, but 
to trust God and be at rest. ^^The Lord tends 
me as a shepherd ; and I shall want nothing. In 
a place of green pasture there he has made me 
dwell: he has nourished me by the water of 
rest. "— Septuagint. 



The Secret Things of God. 

'^Secbet things belong unto the Lord our 
God.'' Deut. 29: 29. A secret is something 
known only to one or to very few. Many things 
are known to God which are kept secret from 
man, but all man's secrets are known to God. 
It pleases God, however, to reveal some of his 
sweet secrets to man. Those who love God and 



OB^ WAL.KS WITH GOD. 151 

serve Mm faithfully have the blessed privilege 
of knowing many things of God and heaven 
that others do not know. God ^'revealeth his 
secrets to his servants.'' Amos 3: 7. Jesns said 
that he would make himself known to us as he 
would not unto the world. Oh, how blessed to 
come near to Christ and have him tell us some 
of the precious secrets contained in those mys- 
teries hidden for ages! The angels knew that 
the mystery of salvation contained many pre- 
cious things, for they desired to look into it. 
The revelations of Jesus are heaven to the soul. 
How the heart that has heard the voice of the 
Lord longs to know more of the secret things 
hidden in him! Such a heart will seek after 
him ; it will cleave to him ; it will rest only when 
in his presence and learning more of him, see- 
ing more of his love, and tasting more of the 
sweetness of his life. 

God usually speaks in a ^^ still, small voice," 
and hence to hear him one must necessarily come 
very near to him. God has a secret place in 
which he tells his secrets. It is only those that 
^^ dwell in the secret place of the Most High'' 
that can know the secrets of the Lord. If you 
would know much of the secret things of God, 



152 



you must live near him. The Lord has a secret 
tabernacle, and it is down in that secret place 
with all the world shut out that he tells his 
secrets. It is a narrow passage that leads to 
this secret pavilion. Houses and lands must be 
left behind. Those hearts to whom houses and 
lands can talk can not hear the still, sweet voice 
of Jesus. The voice of the Lord might bo say- 
ing, ^'Come to me in a quiet hour of prayer"; 
but houses and lands would be saying, ^^You 
have not time; we must have your service." 
If you would hear God speak, you must leave 
this world so far behind that you can not hear it 
when it speaks. 

The way into the Lord's secret pavilion is so 
narrow that father and mother, brothers and 
sisters and friends, must be left behind. Jesus 
may speak ; but if you are not deaf to the voice 
of father or mother, you may not hear him. 
Children also must be left behind. God may 
be calling you to a secret place where he can 
tell you secret things. It may be far from 
home; it may be over the stormy seas; but 
father, mother, brother, sister, or children, may 
talk so loudly to your heart that you can not 
hear God's voice. ^'The secret of the Lord is 



OB, WALKS WITH GOD. 153 

with them that fear him. ' ' To fear God is 
to keep his commandments. 

To enter into the secret chamber of God, your 
own life must be left behind. Self must be cru- 
cified. Oh, how many dear children of God 
have failed to hear the secrets of the Lord be- 
cause of the clamorous voice of self! Jesus 
is talking to your heart, saying, ^^Here is one 
of my poor, needy ones to whom you can now 
give aid, and I will bless you and make you 
happy"; but that monster self sets up such a 
din and confusion that you can not hear the 
voice of Jesus. Sq self must be crucified. 

There are secret things of God to be learned 
all along the Christian way. We are to grow 
not only in the grace but also in the knowledge 
of our Lord Jesus. It is not in the greatest 
affairs and concerns of life only that we need 
to know more of God ; but many, I am persuaded, 
need to know him better in the little happen- 
ings and circumstances of every-day life. Early 
in my Christian experience I was taught a pre- 
cious lesson from the Lord. I had two beautiful 
young cherry-trees growing in my garden. One 
springtime my little boy climbed into one and 
to all appearance ruined it ; but a voice seemed 



154 



to say in my soul, ''All things are of God; look 
unto him and know that all things are for good, 
and you will, see some of his secret things." I 
cut off the broken branches and committed the 
tree into the hands of the Lord. I knew that 
if he was able to curse a fig-tree and cause it 
to die, he was able to bless a cherry-tree and 
cause it to grow. That tree grew as I never saw 
a tree grow. In a short time it was more beau- 
tiful than the other tree. 

When Peter called the Master's attention to 
the withered fig-tree, he answered, ' ' Have faith 
in God," and then farther said, ''What things 
soever ye desire when you pray, believe ye re- 
ceive them, and ye shall have them. ' ' God will 
bless the affairs of your every-day life. Do not 
think anything too hard nor too small for God 
to do. If you want a mountain removed, ask 
him and doubt not, and you shall have what you 
ask; or if it is only a grain of sand you want 
removed, ask the Lord and doubt not, and he 
will remove it. It is more difficult for some to 
have faith for the small things than for the 
great things. If you have but two pieces of 
meat, do not hesitate to give one piece to the 
needy. God can, and will if you ask, make the 



OE, WALKS WITH GOD. 155 

remaining piece go farther than the two would 
have gone without his blessing. This is a secret 
not known by every one. 

A poor Christian brother awoke early one 
morning and calling to his wife, said, '^If we 
should dust the flour-barrel well, do you not 
think we could get enough flour to make bread 
for breakfast?" ^^No," the wife replied, ^^I 
scraped it out clean last evening and barely had 
enough to make bread for supper. ' ' The poor 
preacher lay there for awhile thinking how to 
get bread for his children. It came into his 
mind again that if they would dust the flour- 
barrel they could get flour enough for break- 
fast. He arose and made a fire and then went— 
no doubt with a deep feeling in his heart— to 
dust the flour-barrel. After some dusting and 
scraping and shaking, he succeeded, to the 
wife's astonishment, in getting enough flour to 
make bread for breakfast. She went to pre- 
paring the breakfast, and he sat down to medi- 
tate upon the things of God. 

Just as she was ready to call her husband and 
the children to breakfast, she heard a rap on the 
door. She went to the door, and there stood a 
poorly-dressed man, who said, ^' Madam, can 



156 THE HIDDEK LIFE; 

you give me something to eat?" She went and 
informed her husband of a man's being at their 
door begging for food. He said to his wife, 
''Divide out my portion of the bread and 
give it to the man." ''No," she said, "I 
can not do that. If you do not eat, I can 
not." "Do, wife," the poor preacher said, "as 
I have told you; give him my portion of the 
bread, and you and the children eat your break- 
fast. ' ' She did as requested. She and the chil- 
dren ate heartily. When they had finished their 
breakfast, she called to her husband, "Come, 
eat your breakfast; there is some bread left." 
He went to the table, gave thanks to God, and 
ate all he desired ; and yet there was bread left. 
Such gracious doings of our blessed Lord are 
some of his secrets. 

The Lord Jesus told a secret thing to Peter 
one day. He would not have told it to every 
one, for some would have scoffed at him. He 
told Peter to go to the sea and cast in a hook 
and to take the first fish that should rise. This 
fish, the Savior said, would have a coin in its 
mouth. "Take that," he continued, "and pay 
tribute for thee and me." Peter had sufficient 
faith to do as he was commanded. What his 



OR^ WALKS WITH GOD. 157 

feelings were as he went on his way to the 
brook, I will leave you to imagine. No doubt his 
heart was all expectation and wonder as he 
waited for a bite at his hook. But it was even 
as the Lord had told him. I do not know how 
came the coin in the mouth of the fish, but such 
doings are among the secrets of the Lord. 

I will relate what to me was a most remark- 
able instance of God's answering prayer and 
manifesting himself to his own as he does not 
to the world. In the autumn of 1906 the Gospel 
Trumpet Company, publishers, purchased a 
large printing-press. The cost of -this press was 
something more than fourteen thousand dollars. 
I spoke of the matter to our home congregation 
and asked if they did not wish to do what they 
could in helping to pay for the machine. A poor 
sister, who is rich in grace, desired to have a 
part in the matter. She began to ask the Lord 
to give to her that she might be able to give 
something to this good work. It was one dollar 
she was praying for. The Lord gave her in a 
marvellous way little by little until she had nine- 
ty-five cents. She then earnestly sought the 
Lord for the remaining five cents. After prayer 
she sent her two little boys away to their work, 



158 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

which was splitting wood. One boy struck his 
ax into a block, cracking it partly open. In that 
crack he saw a shining object. He called to his 
aid a larger boy, and they succeeded in getting 
the block of wood open ; whereupon they found 
a silver dime. This had no doubt been placed 
in the tree many years before; for it had all 
grown over, leaving no scar. The Lord pre- 
pared this coin to answer this woman's prayer, 
as he did the coin in the mouth of the fish which 
Peter caught. 

Grod does not manifest himself thus to the 
world, and I .sometimes fear that many of his 
own dear children are not learning as many 
secrets as they might. How many glorious 
secret things lie deeper in God than I have gone, 
I do not know; only, I know there are many. 
My heart is reaching for them with avidity. 
Down, down into God; down into his secret 
pavilion; down where I can see more of his 
love to me ; down where I can feel more of his 
Spirit's power; down where his breathings are 
felt more sensibly upon the soul; down where 
that still, small voice rythms more sweetly and 
can be more distinctly hear^— this is the plead- 
ing of my soul, 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 159 

God's child has nothing to fear. The love of 
a gracious heavenly parent is over it. Have 
faith in God, and he will reveal himself in 
many wondrous secret ways. Christ fed the 
multitude from a few loaves. He is the same 
to-day, and he will do the same for you literally. 
Draw near to him, and he will teach you secret 
things. 



Joy. 

Joy is a pleasurable feeling very similar to 
happiness, delight, peace, etc. Most people love 
to be joyous. Some people do not have as much 
joy as they would like to have. It is your privi- 
lege to be full of joy. ^^Now the God of hope 
fill you with all joy and peace in believing." 
' ' These things have I spoken unto you that my 
joy might remain in you and that your joy might 
be full." John 15: 11. It is your privilege to 
^^have all joy" and to be ^'fuU of joy." The 
apostle says, ^^ Rejoice always." It is your 
privilege to rejoice constantly. 

Some people say that they had great joy when 
they were first saved ten years ago, but that 
they have had so many trials since and met 



160 



THE HIDDEN LIFE; 



with SO many disappointments that they have 
lost their joy. It is true that when people 
are newly bom again and are baptized by 
the Holy Spirit, they are full of joy. The 
prophet in describing this says : ^ ' The ransomed 
of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with 
songs and everlasting joy upon their heads : they 
shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and 
sighing shall flee away." Isa. 35: 10. We can 
illustrate this by taking two cups and calling 
one the cup of sorrow and the other the cup of 
joy. The sinner has no joy in his cup (*^ There 
is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked"), 
while his cup of sorrow is full. When he comes 
to Christ, he finds rest; his cup of sorrow is 
taken away and his cup of joy is full to the 
brim and ofttimes to overflowing. Now, if all 
along the Christian way he does what the Bible 
says, he will always keep the cup of sorrow 
empty and the cup of joy full. None need to ex- 
pect to prosper in the divine life if they are 
hearers of the word and not doers. If you will 
be a doer of God's word, you can keep your 
cup of joy full. Listen to the word: ^^ Count it 
all joy when ye fall into divers temptations." 
J^s. 1:2. Please notice the little word all. It 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 161 

is all joy. If you will count your trials all joy, 
and nothing but joy, the cup of sorrow will al- 
ways remain empty and your cup of joy will be 
full. Praise the Lord ! 

Some people are not sensitive enough to ex- 
perience any great joy. They are too dull in 
their souls. Blessings are falling all around 
them and upon them, and yet they experience no 
joy. Alas! too dull. Such a soul needs to be 
quickened and made sensitive by the Holy 
Spirit. Astronomers, I am told, have a sensitive 
plate arranged at the focused end of their huge 
telescope. To this plate is attached a small 
bell. The rays of light from a passing star 
focused upon this sensitive plate set the bell 
to ringing. So our hearts can be made so sensi- 
tive by the Spirit of God that a ray of light 
from his word or a beam from his countenance 
will set the joy bells ringing in our souls. 



Pleasing Products. 



Last evening the setting sun shone through 
the misty gray cloud and lit up the field and 
forest ^fore me with a mellow radiance that 



162 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

filled my heart with the highest degree of ad- 
miration. My soul was called out in contempla- 
tion of the works of God. The glowing sun, the 
gilded cloud, the golden grain, and forest green 
bathed in the mellow light, presented a picture 
of indescribable beauty to me and turned my 
thoughts to wondering what must be the beauty 
of a landscape in heaven. They have no sun- 
sets there, but they have a light, and that light 
is the light of the Lamb. What can the light 
of a sunset here be, compared with the light of 
the Lamb over there? What can the beauty of 
a field here be when compared to the beauty of 
the fields of heaven? We call a common wild 
flower beautiful ; but when it is compared with 
some of the florist's best productions, its beauty 
fades away. The scene before me is beautiful ; 
but its beauty would fade away, I know, if com- 
pared with a scene in the eternal glory-world. 
The beauty of the scene drew my soul out in 
tender, yearning love to God, the Creator of all. 
A sweet, heavenly solemnity filled my inner be- 
ing. God's presence was round about me, hush- 
ing all to a deep silence. The love of God was 
as a swelling tide in my soul. There is none 
on earth I desire so much as he and none in 



OR^ WALKS WITH GOD. 163 

heaven but him. My soul followeth hard after 
him. I adore his name. I want his will done 
in me perfectly. Oh, that he will season every 
word and be in every thought! and may every 
act be but the moving of his life and will in 
me! I was conscious of his presence. The 
room where I sat was filled with his glory. It 
was good to be there. 

This text of scripture was brought with much 
power to my mind: ^^Now the God of peace, 
that brought again from the dead our Lord Je- 
sus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through 
the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you 
perfect in every good work to do his will, work- 
ing in you that which is well pleasing in his 
sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory 
forever and ever. Amen." Heb. 13: 20, 21. Es- 
pecially did these words rest upon my mind 
with a peculiar sweetness: ^'Working in you 
that which is well pleasing in thy sight." Oh, 
what an intense desire filled my heart for God 
to work in me that which was most pleasing 
unto him! My soul leaped toward him and 
pleaded to be more like him. I would have more 
of his meekness and lowliness, and how I longed 
that the Lord would work these in me until he 



164 THE HIDDEN LIFE] 

was fully pleased! I found upon examination 
that Wilson's translation rendered this text 
in these words : ' ' Producing in you that which 
is well pleasing in his presence." Again such 
intense, burning desire came into my heart to be 
all God wanted me to be that I threw my heart's 
door open and cried, ^^0 Lord, produce in me 
such things as please thee; such things as will 
satisfy thy love toward me." 

In my meditation I saw a dreary, barren 
waste of land— barren, I say, except here and 
there a thorn-bush, a wild cactus, a thistle, or a 
briar. A man came, and with a sharp instru- 
ment he cut these all to the ground and cleared 
them all away. The field now looked clean and 
ready for the planting. The man then came 
and after well fertilizing the field, he sowed 
seed over the whole. Then he came and took 
the roots of the thoni and the thistle, of the cac- 
tus and the briar, out of the ground, lest shoots, 
springing up. would hinder the growth of the 
plants. Then began the careful husbandly. 
The plants wer^e watered as they had need. The 
soil was kept moist and waiTQ. One thing I 
noticed particularly was that the man was care- 
ful not to allow the ground to become hard, or 



on, WALlCS WITH GOD. 165 

compact. Where it hardened, it would turn the 
water off instead of drinking it in, that the roots 
of the plants might be nourished. Wherever it 
would begin to harden, he would break it up 
with a sharp instrument he had for that pur- 
pose. I understood that the plants would not 
grow well if the ground hardened around them. 
I saw the plants grow and bud and blossom and 
produce that fruit which was well pleasing in 
the gardener's sight. 

Then I saw my own heart. It was once a 
parched land, a dreary, barren waste with here 
and there a thorn, a thistle, a cactus, or a 
briar. But a sharp two-edged sword was laid 
to them, and all were cut down, and they were 
washed away. These were my sins, and it was 
the blood of Jesus that washed them all away. 
Then the precious seeds of truth were planted 
in my heart. Again the quick and powerful 
sword was applied. This time it took all the 
roots and remains of sin out of my heart. Then 
all was clean. There was nothing to hinder 
the growing of the plants that my heavenly 
Father had planted. Then began the husbandry. 
Oh, how beautiful! God ^'working in me to 
will and to do of his own good pleasure. ' ' That 



166 THE HIDDEK LIFE; 

once-barren waste began to blossom as tbe rose ; 
waters broke out and streams, and the thirsty 
land became springs of water. Glory to my 
Savior's name ! Wlierever my heart has begun 
to harden, the Spirit of God has been active to 
break it up; for the heavenly plants will not 
grow in a hard heart. Oh, how very tender and 
soft the heart must be kept ! This world has a 
very hardening influence upon the heart ; there- 
fore it must be kept far away and the heart 
guarded with all diligence. 

I am conscious to-day that the plants are 
growing and that they are budding and pro- 
ducing some fruit, and oh ! I hope the Master is 
well pleased. This is a serious thought: ^^Is 
my heart producing that which is well pleasing 
unto the Lord?" I want God to get the besl 
yield possible. If it needs more breaking up, 
I pray that it may be broken, no matter what 
the cost. God's grace will help me to bear the 
pain. Oh, what worlds of glory fill my soul! 
I have the sweet consciousness that my heart 
is as the soft, pliable clay in the potter's hands. 
No part is resisting the will of God. 

Two days ago I received a letter from a 
brother who is soon going to India. It read in 



OE^ WALKS WITH GOD. 167 

part, ^^If the Lord is laying it upon your heart 
to go to India, I should be pleased to have you 
join me." I thought, ''It is not possible that 
God wants me to go to India. " Then I thought, 
''Lord, thou hast died for me, and what should 
I not be willing to do for thee?" I came face 
to face with this matter. Then I thought, "If 
the burning stake were before me and the Lord 
should give me my choice, to go to the stake or 
to go to India, I should hardly know which to 
choose, but before either I could say, ' Thy will, 
God, be done.' " 

In my meditation I well understood that the 
working of the Spirit in our hearts is to go on 
and that they are to bear more fruit throughout 
our life, and it may be, and I believe will, 
through all eternity. A good, thrifty, strong 
tree taken from the nursery and transplanted 
in our garden will grow more rapidly and bear 
fruit earlier than a dwarfed one. 

In. the nature of things, if the same careful 
husbandry is given, the graces in our hearts will 
grow more rapidly each succeeding year of our 
life. A falling body will fall faster the second 
minute than it did the first. A plant will grow 
more the second week than it did the first and 



168 OTHE HIBDEK LIFE; 

more each succeeding week until it reaches ma- 
turity. The graces in our souls, if well watered, 
will grow more rapidly each year of our life 
and it does not yet appear what we shall grow 
to be ; but we Imow that when the Vine-dresser 
comeSj we shall be like him. 

Another scene is now before me. This scene 
has for its origin the words of Phil. 2 : 13— ^^ For 
it is God which worketh in you to will and to do 
of his good pleasure. ' ' The scene is the ground- 
work for a painting. All is prepared and ready 
for the work of the artist. He now appears 
and begins his work. It progresses slowly, but 
stroke by stroke it is finished. We look and find 
that he has painted an exact likeness of himself. 
Answering to this scene, is the Spirit of God 
working in me ^^to will and to do of his good 
pleasure.'' My heart is prepared to become the 
ground-work for an impression. Christ is the 
artist. He is working in me. He is giving a 
stroke here and there. The progress is slow, 
but I am conscious that some work is being 
done. It does not yet appear what it shall be ; 
only, I know that when it is finished, it will be 
like Jesus. Christ is working in me his own 
life and holiness, and some day I shall be like 



OB, WALKS WITH GOD. 169 

Mm in the sense of a fulL redemption of soul 
and body. 



The Twenty-third Psalm. 

No sweeter language, perhaps, was ever 
penned than this Psalm. What wonderful words, 
^'The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want"! 
What beauty ! what sublimity ! and what incom- 
prehensibleness. The soul in contemplating 
these words is lost in admiration. Oh, that my 
pen could tell the feelings of my soul as I stand 
with unveiled heart before these words ! They 
come up from the dim regions of the past like 
the soft, sweet strains of some far-away choir, 
and they point us forward to the glorious Lord 
who so tenderly shepherds all his creatures. 
How blessed to have Jesus for our shepherd! 
How sweet to know that this is really true! 
Will you not lay this book down and go out into 
some place of solitude and think for an hour 
about this? Think of the time when you were 
almost in despair and about ready to murmur; 
think of the time when you were discouraged 
and ready to faint by the way; and let your 
head drop for shame. 



170 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

Can we ever be anything else than happy and 
hopeful when we know Jesns is onr shepherd? 
Ah! we wi].] never never fear again. We will 
never begin to tremble and draw back because 
the way is growing dark. Xo ; we feel like trust- 
ing Jesus no matter how thick is the darkness. 
How safe we feel! Let the waves dash, our 
Shepherd can still them at his will ; let the winds 
blow, our KShepherd can temper them; let the 
storm-clouds gather, he can make them pour 
down blessings ; let the darkness fall, the light 
of his countenance can dispel the heaviest gloom. 
We will never be discouraged again. We will 
never be anything else than happy again. O 
Christian heart, look up and be hopeful; look 
up and let these sweet words of light shine into 
your heart in all their glory. 

The Septuagint version of this Psalm is so 
beautiful I can not refrain from transcribing a 
portion of it. ''The Lord tends me as a shep- 
herd, and I shall want nothing. Li a place of 
green pasture, there he has made me dwell: he 
has nourished me by the water of rest. He has 
restored my soul : he has g-uided me into paths 
of righteousnes:s for his name's sake. Yea, even 
if I should walk in the midst of the shadow of 



OE, WALKS WITH GOD. 171 

death, I will not be afraid of evils : for thou art 
•with me ; thy rod and thy staff, these have com- 
forted me. Thou hast prepared a table before 
me in the presence of them that afflict me : thou 
has thoroughly anointed my head with oil ; and 
thy cup cheers me like the best wine. Thy 
mercy also shall follow me all the days of my 
life: and my dwelling shall be in the house of 
the Lord for a very long tnjje." This was so 
full of touching, thrilling, beautiful sentiment 
I could not stay my pen until the whole Psalm 
was written. 

It will not take you long to commit these 
words to memory. I wish you would do it. And 
some day when in a deserted place and lonely 
feelings come creeping over you, let these words 
return upon your heart and melt away the de- 
spondency as the bright rays of autumn's sun 
melt the early frost. Some time, when the tear 
of sorrow is about to fall from the eye, let the 
sweet strain of this Psalm soothe the heart and 
wipe away the tear. Some day, when it seems as 
if all the world has forsaken you and you are but 
a poor, friendless wanderer in an unfriendly 
world, go and sit down in some quiet place ana 
sing these words. As you sing, ^^The Lord is 



172 a?HE HIDDEN Iil3?E;i ) 

my shepherd ; I shall not want, ' ' listen, and you 
will hear the angels catching up the sweet re-« 
frain and shouting, ^^ Glory to God in the high- 
est, peace on earth, good-will to men." 

Talk no more of fears and tears; talk no 
more of dark and stormy days, of sorrow of 
heart and thirsting of soul for peace and rest. 
This song sings to you of Jesus, who gives rest, 
whose love dispels every fear, whose sweet life 
quenches all the thirstings of the soul, and 
whose salvation opens up a deliverance from 
every evil. Glory to his name! How can the 
Christian's soul be disquieted and cast down, 
when he can see Jesus as his tender shepherd? 
How slow oftentimes is man to see what Jesus 
is to him ! 

Only a few days ago while viewing the well- 
cared- for grounds which surround our Nation's 
presidential mansion, I saw in the midst of these 
verdant shrubbery grounds a high, misty, 
spraying fountain. From where I stood I saw 
nothing but the colorless water in misty spray; 
but walking to a certain spot, I saw in this water 
all the bright colors of the rainbow. Mark this : 
AVhen I stepped aside from that spot, I could 
see no colors. These rainbow colors were pro- 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 173 

duc^d by the falling of the rays of the sun upon 
the drops of water in the clondy spray; and 
when I was in a proper position under the sun, 
these colors were visible to me. Many times I 
have read the twenty-third Psalm and have seen 
nothing but the colorless fountain. It was only 
when I came into a proper position under God 
that I saw the colors of the rainbow. It was 
when the light of heaven shone upon the words 
, of this Psalm, that it reflected the glories of 
grace upon my soul. 

It is possible that many of my readers have 
not heard the sweet music that comes pealing 
forth from this gospel in song and their eyes 
have not been open to see the rich beauties of 
color as they come welling up from its wonder- 
ful depth. A man was one day traveling along 
a highway reading. These were the words he 
read: ^^He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; 
and like . a lamb dumb before his shearer, so 
opened he not his mouth. In his humiliation his 
judgment was taken away: and who shall de- 
clare his generation? for his life is taken from 
the earth. ' ' In these words was meaning far 
hidden from his understanding. The Scriptures 
have a voice, but alas ! how many ears are dull 



174 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

of hearing ! They contain many secret things ; 
but these secrets are spoken in such a still, 
small voice that we need to draw very near to 
hear them. Many in reading the Bible fail to 
hear its voice. Who has heard all this twenty- 
third Psalm has to say? my soul, awake and 
lend thine ears to catch the faintest whisper of 
this poetic strain: ^^The Lord is my shepherd; 
I shall not want/* 

The words of the Bible are not only true in 
the book, but true in heaven. When we read the 
Bible in the Spirit, we do not hear the words 
of the book only; but we hear them in a still, 
small voice from heaven. When the Spirit of 
God takes the word of God and talks to our 
hearts it is spoken from the world above. But 
oh, how hushed and still must be our soul to 
hear in the words of the Bible that accompani- 
ment from heaven ! AVhen I open my Bible and 
read, ' ' The Lord is my shepherd, ' ' there comes 
ringing down in sweet, soft stillness from 
heaven, ^^The Lord is my shepherd." Then I 
read, ^^I shall not want," and like the faintest 
echo, I hear from the gates of glory, ^^I shall 
not want. ' ' 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 175 

Recently I stood in one of the spacious rooms 
of our nation's capitol. On every side were 
marble columns and statues. Tlie floor was of 
white and slate-bine marble blocks. In that vast 
area of marble floor was a white block upon 
which if a person would stand and bow his head 
and speak, the words would be echoed back to 
him. The dome was so shaped that one could 
hear the echo only when one was standing on 
that particular stone. Those standing by one 's 
side could not hear the echo. This beautifully 
illustrates the echo of the Bibio from heaven. 
If you will stand in a proper position and say, 
^ ' The Lord is my shepherd, ' ' the echo will come 
back, *'The Lord is my shepherd." No one but 
your own heart can hear the echo, and you can 
hear it only when you are standing in the proper 
place. 

When you read the twenty-third Psalm and 
fail to see the rainbow of heavenly glories and 
to hear the echo from above, you are not stand- 
ing in a proper attitude. 

As we read this pastoral song, two pictures 
are presented to our view. In one is a peaceful, 
flowing river. By the side of this stream is a 
green pasture in which are lying contentedly a 



176 THE HIDDEliT LIFE; 

flock of sheep. This is typical of the Christian's 
rest, of his satisfaction. He dwells in rich pas- 
ture lands; he eats in plenty, and is satisfied. 
He has no want. He is not seeking for food; 
his want is fully supplied. In the presence of 
his enemies (literal or spiritual) a table is 
spread, of which he eats and wants nothing. 
Satan may rage and roar ; our spiritual enemies 
may threaten ; but in their face we can sit down 
and eat in quietness. 

We shall never want for food, either literal 
or spiritual; for Jesus tends us as a shepherd 
and leads us into green pastures. Another text 
reads, ^'The young lions do lack and suffer 
hunger; but they that seek the Lord shall not 
want any good thing. ' ' Then, there is one which 
says, ^^ There is no want to them that fear him.^* 
Still another reads, '*The Lord God is a sun 
and shield: he will give grace and glory; and 
no good thing will he withhold from them that 
walk uprightly.'' Never to know a want is the 
assurance these blessed words give to our 
hearts. Oh ! why will you be discontented f Why 
will you fear? Step out in a sweet feeling of 
safety, no matter how the wolf of want may 
assail you. We shall not \\^ant rest. **Come 



• 



OB^ WALKS WITH GOD. 177 

unto me," says Jesus, '^and I will give you 
rest.'' Christ is our Kest-giver. Thi& rest is 
full and complete. Anxiety has taken wing, and 
sweet, tranquil rest is reigning in the soul. We 
shall not go astray for want of guidance. Jesus, 
our shepherd, will lead us where there is the 
best food for our souls. All is safe in our 
Savior's control. He ever leads us in the path 
of righteousness. He is our keeper, and nothing 
can harm us. 

Another picture is that of a shepherd leading 
a flock of sheep down a dark and rugged ra- 
vine. There are wild beasts upon every hand, 
dangerous rocks are hanging overhead, and an 
awful precipice is near. The sheep are follow- 
ing very close to the shepherd, but seem to fear 
no eril. The green pasture land and the quiet, 
flowing stream are beyond. 

Jesus sometimes leads his trusting children 
through dark valleys, but they fear no evil. 
Death may threaten upon every hand ; they cling 
the closer to their kind Shepherd. Even in 
thi;se dark and dangerous places they fear no 
evil. They dwell in safety. The pasture land 
and the gently-flowing brooks lie beyond the 
dark valley. If we would reach the green pas- 



178 THE HIDDEN LIFE ; 

ture fields and the waters of rest, we must pass 
through the dangerous valley. 

Beloved pilgrim on your homeward journey, 
will you remember when the clouds gather thick 
over your head and the waves dash around your 
feet and darkness reigns all around— will you 
remember then that the pleasant fields lie just 
beyond? Fear no evil in these trying times. 
Draw a little nearer to your Shepherd and go 
trustingly on. He will guide you safely, be as- 
sured. He has a table prepared at the other 
end of the dark pass ; but to be prepared to sit 
at this table and partake of the things he has 
prepared, you must go with him through the 
shadowy valley. 

To walk with God we must sometimes walk 
through the valley of the shadow of death ; but 
oh, how sweet! A young mother sat down to 
weep over the lifeless body of her darling in- 
fant; but heaven seemed so much dearer be- 
cause her baby had gone that she could only look 
up to Jesus and thank him for the stroke he had 
given. 



OR^ WALKS WITH GOD. 179 

Good Works. 

We are not saved and given a home in heaven 
because of our good works, and yet we must 
work as though our getting to heaven did de- 
pend upon our works. Man may do a great 
many good deeds and yet be far away from 
God; but it is true that those who are near to 
God are active in good works. One of the surest 
evidences that we are gaining a closer walk with 
Jesus is that our lives are becoming fuller of 
good deeds ; that we are more eager to do some- 
thing to his glory. God wants a people to walk 
with him ; therefore he saves us from evil works, 
makes us new creatures in Christ, and prepares 
us for good works. Is that not wonderful and 
glorious? God has ordained that man should 
walk in good works. See Eph. 2 : 10. He pro- 
vides the works and prepares man for the work. 
God has provided plenty of work ; and if those 
whom he has prepared become neglectful and 
fail to do what he has provided, he will cast 
them out. 

Be not weary in well doing, but as you have 
opportunity, do good unto all men. You desire 
a closer walk with God, but you are not willing 



180 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

to share your abundance with the poor widow 
in want. You sit down to your table bountifully 
spread, while some of God's dear children some- 
where are crying for bread. To have a closer 
walk with God is to have ears that can hear 
more distinctly the pleadings of the poor. If 
you are not willing to let all your earthly pos- 
sessions work for Jesus, you can not walk with 
him. You want to be nearer to God, but you 
are not willing to get up early in the morning 
or spend half a night praying for the souls he 
died to save. God has some children in dark 
heathen lands calling for the gospel, but you are 
not willing to lose a few hours sleep to pray 
God to send them some one with the words of 
life. You long to feel yourself growing in grace ; 
but you spend Sunday afternoon asleep in your 
easy chair and visit some neighbor and talk 
with them of unprofitable things instead of tak- 
ing your Bible or some good book and going to 
read something helpful to the needy. You are 
praying to be more like Jesus, but in your care- 
lessness let many opportunities of doing good 
pass by you daily unimproved. It is not my 
purpose now to read you everything the Bible 
says about good works; but if you will take 



OB, WALKS Wia?H GOD. 181 

that blessed book and your concordance and in 
some quiet evening read all the texts relative 
to the subject, you will no doubt be benefited. 
Let me say, however, that there is something 
for you to do. There is much for you to do, 
and much you must do if you would walk with 
the Lord. Oh, that all beloved saints could 
only realize the great responsibility resting up- 
on them! God makes you greatly responsible 
for the salvation of souls. What has God chosen 
you for? What has he sanctified you for? To 
prepare you unto every good work and to make 
you meet for his use. God wants to use you ; he 
wants to use you in saving other souls, which 
are of more value to him than a world. Will it 
not be an awful thing in the day of judgment to 
know that there is a soul in hell that would have 
been in heaven if we had only let God have his 
own way and will in us? It seems that heaven 
could scarcely be heaven to us should we have 
such knowledge. Some may think that God will 
not permit a soul to be lost that would be saved ; 
that if he does not save by one means, he will by 
another. This is not correct. God wants to 
use you, and no one can do your work and do his 
own, for each one has all he can do. God could 



182 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

gain nothing by taking some one else to do your 
work; for if some one is used to do your 
work, then some of that person's work must go 
undone. If you fail to do your work, it will 
never be done. The good that you can do will 
never be done unless you do it. 

Will you listen closely and prayerfully while 
I read you a few words from God's Holy Book? 
^^All scripture is given by inspiration of God, 
and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for 
correction, for instruction in righteousness : that 
the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly fur- 
nished unto all good works." 2 Tim. 3: 16, 17. 
God has done all that you might be furnished 
throughout unto all good works. He has given 
you the Scriptures ; he has given ministers and 
tells them to put saints in mind to be ready to 
every good work. See Titus 3 : 1. We have be- 
fore said that our good works do not take us to 
heaven. This is true ; but it is equally true that 
if we are not zealous of good works we shall 
never gain heaven. 

In Titus 3 : 8 are these words : ' ' This is a 
faithful saying. ' ' What does the apostle mean 
to say is a faithful saying? It is the words in 
verse 7—^^ Being justified by his grace, we 



i 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. . 183 

should be made heirs according to the hope of 
eternal life." This fact of being heirs accord- 
ing to the hope of eternal life is a faithful say- 
ing ; and he would have ministers to affirm this 
faithful saying constantly, ^^that they which 
believe in God might be careful to maintain good 
works." See verse 8. This clearly implies that 
to be heirs according to the hope of eternal life 
we must be careful to maintain good works. 
Work to be done is at your hand constantly. 
You need never be idle because of a lack of any- 
thing to do. There is a kind word to be spoken, 
a child to be instructed, a cup of water to be 
given; there are the hungry to be fed, the sick 
to be cared for, and all men to be prayed for. 
You would be very industrious in waiting on 
Jesus if he were here. Well, he is here. That 
poor woman who called on you for aid, that 
was Jesus. That old man who wants a few pen- 
nies, that is Jesus. The sick child who wanted 
a flower, that was Jesus. And those around 
your own fireside that need your help so often, 
they are Jesus. I will tell you a story I read 
years ago. One cold winter night as a man 
was returning to his home from his place of 
labor, he passed near a soldier at his post of 



184 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

duty keeping sentinel. The laboring man saw 
that the soldier was very thinly clad. Going up 
to the soldier, the man said, ^^You may have 
my heavy coat to protect you from the cold of 
this wintry night." While speaking he took off 
his coat. Handing it to the soldier, he went on 
to his fireside, to his supper, to his bed, and to 
his dreams. That night he dreamed that he saw 
the Savior coming in the distance. As he came 
nearer, the man saw that the Savior had his (the 
man's) coat on. When Jesus came near enough, 
the man said, ^^I let the thinly-clad soldier have 
my coat last night, and how has it come about 
that you have it on?" Jesus answered, ^^As oft 
as ye do it unto one of my little ones, ye do it 
unto me." Whenever you do a good deed to 
any one with a pure motive, you do it to Jesus. 
Be zealous therefore of good works. 



Kindness. 



^ ' Be ye kind one to another. ' ' Eph. 4 : 32. The 
nature and the extent of the kindness we are to 
have to one another are plainly suggested by 
the remainder of the text. As God for Jesus' 



OE, WALKS WITH GOD. 185 

sake has forgiven us, so we for his sake should 
forgive one another. This implies that in ten- 
der-heartedness and kindness we should be 
Christ like. As he is kind and tender to us, 
so we should be kind and tender to others. 
Kindness is not something to be put on outward- 
ly, but it is to adorn the inward man; it is a 
disposition of the heart. He whose hidden man 
of the heart is adorned with the sweet grace of 
kindness finds great delight in making others 
happy. Kindness is exercised toward others 
by cheerfully doing what we can to lighten their 
burdens, to alleviate their suffering, to supply 
their needs, to encourage and cheer them. 

Kindness is a fruit of love. ^^Love suffereth 
long and is kind. ' ' We are kind to those whom 
we love. It is only when love fills our hearts 
that we can be ^^ kindly affectioned one to an- 
other with brotherly love." 

I will ask you, my reader, a question, not to 
condemn you, but to awaken you to a thought- 
ful consideration of your life. Are you a hus- 
band? If so, are you as kind to your wife as 
you should be? Do you cheerfully and delight- 
fully do what you can to lighten her burdens 
and to sweeten her life ? Have you a deep con- 



186 



THE HIDDEIT IZFS; 



cem for her happiness? Do yon sympathize 
with her as yon shonld when she is snffering! 
Are yonr words always as soft, as mild, and as 
full of tenderness and love as they shonld be! 
Is there ever a tinge of bitterness in your 
words? Do they have the least sharpness or 
hastiness? Are yon a wife? read over the 
above qnestions and apply them to yonrself. 
Are yon a father or a mother? are yon as kind 
to those tender olive-plants that God has given 
yon as yon shonld be? Does there sometimes 
a little crossness or si: : _ — get into yonr 
words? Oh! be eareiui, otr piayerfnl, dearly 
beloved, lest there come over yon a fretfnl, care- 
less feeling very similar to impatience or anger, 
and canse yon to speak too hastily and too 
harshly. Be earefnl to keep mild and sweet 
nnder the most trying circnmstances. Be a con- 
qneror in every honr of temptation. 

I think I can almost hear some one saying, 
"I am not as kind to my family as I shonld be." 
Are yon endeavoring to improve? There is 
hope for the man who realizes that he is not ad 
patient and kind as he shonld be^ bnt who is 
putting forth every effort and eamestiy plead- 
ing with God that he mav be more kind. Cnlti- 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 187 

vate the disposition of kindness. It is a sweet 
and beautiful grace. It is full of perfume. It 
will cheer and gladden the hearts of others. It 
will brighten your home and make it an Eden. 
Put on, beloved saint, put on kindness. Do 
not allow ugly feelings to creep over you and 
cause you to act hastily or to speak harshly. 
Give such no place in your life. Impatient feel- 
ings mar the image of Jesus in the soul, and 
they will rob your life of its sweet fragrance. 
Always be cheerful, never gloomy ; always wear 
a smile, never a frown; always be kind, and 
never ill or impatient— if you would have a close 
walk with God and be like him. 



The Word of Righteousness. 

The inspired apostle in writing his Hebrew 
letter said, ^^ Every one that useth milk is un- 
skilful in the word of righteousness." Chap. 5: 
13. Milk is the proper food for infants, but 
adults need more solid and stronger food. This 
is true in the spiritual sense as well as in the 
natural sense. The more simple truths of the 
gospel, or the first principles of the oracles of 



188 THE HIDDEN life; 

God, such as repentance, saving faith, baptism, 
laying on of hands, the resurrection of the 
dead, and eternal judgment (Heb. 6: 1, 2), be- 
long to babes in Christ; but those of full age 
are supposed to need stronger food. 

In verse eleven of chapter five we learn that 
this apostle would have been glad to feed the 
Hebrews upon some of the strong meat found in 
the economy of grace, but that he could not, 
as they were dull of hearing. Allow me to quote 
this text from Conybeare and Howson : ^ ' Of 
whom I have many things to say, and hard of 
interpretation, since ye have grown dull in un- 
derstandmg." This church had been more 
spiritual and could feed upon stronger food than 
at the time of the apostle's writing. ^^ They had 
become such as had need of milk." Let this be 
a warning to every reader. If you neglect to 
watch and pray, you will very soon become dull 
of understanding. You may hear some talk 
about having faith to remove mountains, but 
you will not understand ; or you may hear some 
talk of having faith that the meal in the barrel 
will not fail, but you will not understand. These 
Hebrew Christians had once been enlightened; 
they had had a zeal and had been earnest; they 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 189 

had keenly relished the strong meat; but they 
'had become dnll of hearing, or as the Greek im- 
plies, *^ difficult to move." To be once enlight- 
ened and then to grow dull of hearing makes it 
very difficult to get the sluggishness removed 
and the understanding enlightened again. 

In the sixth chapter the apostle continues the 
thought, saying, ^^For it is impossible for those 
who were once enlightened, and have tasted of 
the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of 
the Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good word 
of God, and the powers of the world to come, 
if they shall fall away, to renew them again 
unto repentance." One translation reads diffi- 
cult instead of impossible. Another brings out 
the thought that it is impossible for those who 
have become so dull and sluggish and seared 
over as to fall entirely away, to shake off the 
dead, stupifying power, and that only God can 
do it. Whatever may have been in the mind 
of the apostle, I feel like warning every one that 
is enlightened, against becoming dull of hear- 
ing ; and if some of my readers are already 
stupid, may God help you to arouse and shake 
off the spell before you fall away. 



190 



Those who can feed only upon milk ^^are un- 
skilful in the word of righteousness. " Milk is a 
good food for strong men when used in connec- 
tion with the more solid foods, but milk alone 
is not sufficient for them. So the simplest truths 
of the gospel are always food to the Christian, 
but they must be mixed with the strong meat of 
the word if we desire to grow in the grace and 
knowledge of Jesus. By the word of righteous- 
ness is meant the gospel. 

This same writer says, ^^I am not ashamed 
of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of 
God unto salvation to every one that believeth ; 
to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For 
therein is the righteousness of God revealed 
from faith to faith.'' Eom. 1: 16, 17. In the 
gospel of Christ God's righteousness is revealed 
by faith. The gospel is, therefore, the word of 
righteousness. It reveals the righteous char- 
acter of God. He notes the sparrow's fall; he 
numbers the hairs of our head; he constantly 
cares for us ; he pities us ; he loves his enemies 
and sends the rain on the just and the unjust; 
when he is reviled, he reviles not again; he 
grants our requests and supplies all our needs. 
Is he not righteous? This righteousness is re- 



OK^ WALKS WITH GOD. 191 

vealed to our understandings by faitli; and as 
we increase in faith, God's righteousness will 
be more and more revealed to our hearts. 

In every promise we see God's righteousness. 
He says he will never leave nor forsake us. 
Those who are dull of hearing and are unskilful 
in the word of righteousness do not see God's 
righteousness in this promise; but the enlight- 
ened see it clearly, and the stronger their faith, 
the clearer they can see. God is ever with them ; 
at no time does he leave them alone. By faith 
they see this, so they are ever at rest ; nothing 
disturbs them or makes them afraid. 

One time, when my wife and I were several 
miles from home, a wheel of our carriage caught 
under a small piece of timber protruding above 
the road surface. Some spokes were broken and 
the rim seriously damaged. Wife, being in 
delicate health, was unable to walk such a dis- 
tance. The question was. How are we to reach 
home? We remembered many of God's prom- 
ises— '^ I will never leave thee nor forsake thee." 
'^I will supply all your need." ^^ Whatsoever 
things ye desire when you pray, believe that 
ye receive them, and ye shall have them. " ^ ^ If 
ye have faith, ... ye shall say unto this moun- 



192 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

tain, Be thou removed, and be tlioii cast into 
the sea; it shall be done." Now, we knew that 
naturally the wheel would not bear us up one 
mile of our way, and we knew of no way out 
but to ask God to uphold that wheel and take 
us safely home. Faith came into our hearts, 
and we drove on praising God with a feeling 
of safety, just as if every wheel had been sound. 
God was true to his promises, and we could see 
his goodness and righteousness as we had not 
before. 

To be unskilful in the word of righteousness 
is to be unable to see or comprehend what 
God's promises contain. We become righteous 
m our own character to the extent that we see 
his righteousness. The promise or the com- 
mandment is a mirror; and if we look into it 
by faith and see the righteousness of God, we 
shall be changed into the same image. 

Jesus teaches us to ^^Seek the kingdom of 
God and his righteousness." We are to seek 
to know more of God's righteousness and to be- 
come more like him in righteousness. To seek 
the kingdom of God is to live for the advance- 
ment of God's cause; to have the heart intense- 
ly interested in the work of God; to live for 



OR^ WALKS WITH GOD. 193 

heaven, and not for earth; to show by your 
manner of life that yonr home is in heaven, and 
not on the earth, and that your affections are 
not upon the things of earth, bnt upon heaven- 
ly things, and that yonr heart and treasures are 
above. To seek God's righteousness is to look 
into the depths of every promise and command- 
ment and see the goodness of God therein re- 
vealed. As you see deeper truths in God's word, 
by faith the moral power of those truths will 
lift your soul into a more perfect image of 
God. Every time you obey a commandment or 
believe a promise, you become a little more like 
God. Suppose you are in very great need and 
you come humbly to God in prayer. You plead 
the promise, ^^My God shall supply all your 
need. ' ' Your prayer of faith reaches the throne 
of God, and he in a marvellous way answers. As 
a result, your soul is brought nearer to God, 
and God is brought nearer to your soul, and you 
are made more like him. As a rule, it is the 
poor and needy and those who have great tests 
of faith and are driven to God in earnest prayer 
that bear the brightest image of God in their 
souls. Seek God's righteousness, and b^ not 



194 THE HIDDEN LIFE;. 

unskilful or ignorant of that word through 
which the righteousness of God is revealed. 

We are exhorted to ^^ follow after righteous- 
ness" and to ^^ fight the good fight of faith." 
By searching the word of God, which is the word 
of righteousness, we by faith and obedience be- 
come more righteous, and more skilful in the 
word of righteousness. To follow after right- 
eousness is to live upon the righteous word and 
by faith bring the righteousness of the word into 
your own heart, and thus daily become more in 
the righteous image of God and his word. Do 
not think you have gained all. He who thinks 
he has gained all will gain no more. I am sure 
you can yet have a closer walk with God and 
be yet more like him. 



Fervency. 

'* Whoever keeps God's commandments," 
says the apostle John, ^4n him is the love of 
God perfected." This implies most clearly that 
those who do not keep God's commandments are 
not perfected in love. There is such a thing as 
loving in word and tongue, and not in deed and 



OE^ WALKS WITH GOD. 195 

in truth. We are commanded to be ^^ fervent 
in spirit." Apollos, ^^ being fervent in the Spir- 
it, spake and taught diligently the things of the 
Lord. ' ' See Acts 18 : 25. The word fervent is 
translated from the Greek term zeo and means 
to boil, to be hot. In Latin it is few ens and 
fervo to be hot and to swell with heat ; to swarm 
as bees whose motion resembles the boiling of 
water. 

In the religious world to-day there is much 
deadness, coldness, etc. The love of many is 
waxing cold. To serve God acceptably is to be 
fervent in spirit. The apostle Paul was charged 
with being mad, but he was only fervent in 
spirit. We are commanded to love one another 
with a pure heart fervently. We are to love 
with a love that is warm; a love that makes it- 
self felt by its ardor. 

John Bunyan tells us of the threats Satan 
made to rob him of the warmth of love. 

^^You are very hot now," Satan said, '^but 
I will cool you; this frame shall not last always. 
Many have been as hot as you for a spirt [short 
time], but I have quenched their zeal." 

^^But I will watch," replied Bunyan, ^^and 
take care not to lose my love." 



196 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

^'Though you do," Satan answered, *^I will 
be too hard for yon ; I will cool yon insensibly, 
by degrees, by little and little. What care I 
though I be seven years in chilling your heart 
if I can but do it at last? A continual rocking 
of the cradle will lull the baby to sleep. I will 
ply it close. I will have my end accomplished. 
Though you be burning hot at present, I can. 
pull you from this fire. I shall have you cold 
before it be long. ' ' 

Satan is making greater effort to-day to lull 
souls to sleep than ever before, and it is alarm- 
ing to see how well he is succeeding. Under his 
opiates of worldliness, the love of many is grow- 
ing cold. Many are losing their first love. May 
God awaken slumbering souls ! You can abound 
more and more in love; you can become more 
and more spiritual; your soul can glow and 
quiver in the intense heat of God's love. Some 
one has asked, '^How can I keep myself in the 
fervor of love?" The Bible answers the ques- 
tion. ^^By praying in the Holy Spirit." See 
Jude 20, 21. It is in the spiritual prayers that 
the soul is fed and made to glow with heaven's 
love. Recently I was thrown for a time among 
a number of cold-hearted professorB of religion. 



Ott^ WALKS WITH GOD. 19? 

My soul cried unto the Lord, ^^Fill me, God, 
more and more with the fulness of thy love, that 
my example may beget love in others. ' ' 

It is only the fervent in spirit who can walk 
with God. Those whose hearts are aflame with 
love and devotion can go hand in hand with 
him. The lukewarm can not walk with him. 
He would rather not have you in his company 
at all if you can not be fervent in spirit and 
love. 



Grace Sufficient. 



• Man is a perfectly helpless creature; he can 
do nothing. He is as helpless to do anything as 
is an Ethiopian to change his skin or a leopard 
his spots. He is a mere weak worm. Unless 
help comes from some other source, he is lost 
and forever ruined. He can not save himself; 
he is at the mercy of the Creator. Fortunately 
for helpless man, his Creator is merciful; he is 
a God of tender compassion and love. Glory 
to his name ! He set his love upon poor, weak, 
fallen man and saves him by grace. Man can 
obtain help and favor from God through Je&us 



198 



THB HIDDEN LIFE; 



Christ. It is only by grace that man is any- 
thing. The apostle understood this, therefore 
said, ' ' By grace I am what I am. ' ' 

While man is weak, yet he can do all things 
by the strengthening grace of God. Heaven's 
throne of grace is open to man. He can come 
boldly to that throne and find grace to help and 
strengthen m every needy hour. He can triumph 
over sin. Though sin did once sway its scepter 
over man's heart and he bowed to this tyran- 
nical master a subjected slave, thank God, 
through grace man is made free. He can shout 
the victory over sin. He can look down into 
the hole from which grace has digged him and 
praise Him who has set him in a heavenly place 
and who causes him always to triumph. Man 
at one time was in bondage to the dreaded mon- 
ster Death ; but grace has removed Death 's cruel 
sting, and now man fears not that icy hand. 
He can look at sin, death, and hell, and through 
grace thank God for victory. 

Grace will sweeten the life of man; it will 
banish every fear ; it will lighten every burden 
and be a comfort in eveiy trying hour. Oh, 
the blessedness of grace ! What sweet comfort 
and consolation, follow in her train. As the 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 199 

sunset gilds the cloud; so grace will emboss 
every sorrow with a mellow radiance that takes 
away the pain. Lay hold, despairing soul, up- 
on the throne of grace by faith and be trans- 
ported into an atmosphere of light and love, of 
peace and hope. Rich particles of glory can 
be drawn down to your soul that will light up 
your pathway and enable you to be blessedly 
contented in every circumstance in life, patient 
in every affliction, faithful to perform every 
duty ; and that will put a modesty and meekness 
in your every action, a cheerfulness in your 
countenance, a reverence and devotion in your 
spirit, a sweetness in every expression, and 
throw about you such an attractive lustre, as 
will make you a blessing everywhere you go. 
Bow humbly and dependently before the 
throne of grace ; there in earnest, fervent prayer 
bring down strength and blessings that will 
elevate your soul and make you more a creature 
of heaven than of earth. Grace elevates the 
character and puts a spiritual tone into your 
being that allies you more to angels than to 
unregenerate men. At the throne of grace you 
can wave the palm of victory; there you can 
sway scepter; there you can sing the song of 



200 THE HIDDEX LIFE ; 

triumph in the sweetest melody : there you can 
trample every foe beneath your feet; there yon 
can defeat every lust of the flesh that wars 
against your soul; there you can be crowned a 
prince and a king: there you can turn your 
back upon every dark picture and see the bright 
side of things ; there you can look by faith down 
your journey of life and see green fields, shady 
groves, rippling streams and blooming flowers ; 
there you can see Jesus at the right hand of 
God and a mansion of glory where your eternal 
rest shall be. Come boldly to the throne of 
gi'ace and be at rest. 



Giving Encouragement. 

Theee is much along life's way to discourage 
Some shadows fall upon the pathway of every 
person. One of Satan's strongest devices to 
overthrow a soul is to discourage it. Indefatig- 
able is he in his efforts to make the way seem 
hard. He will try to make it seem that no one 
in all the world cares for you. Knowing this, 
how ready we should be to give encouragement 
to the despairing one! TTe are going through 



OB, walk:s with Got>. 201 

this world but once, and it is far better to be 
a sunbeam than a cloud. This world has need 
of your smiles, but not of your frowns. Enough 
shadows are falling upon those around you. 

This is a busy world, indeed; but God pity 
the man that is so busy he can not scatter a 
little sunshine as he goes along! The light of 
a smile will never die out. The fragrance of a 
kind word will never lose its sweetness. They 
will beautify your own soul and cheer the life 
of others. They will make earth a heaven for 
you and disperse the gloom from other hearts. 
This sweet story I was one time told: A lady 
who was very sick sent for a certain Christian 
gentleman. When he came to the bed-side of 
the sick woman, she said, ''Sir, I have long 
had a desire to thank you for the encourage- 
ment you gave me one day.^' 

''Madam," the man replied, "you must be 
mistaken ; I have no recollection of ever meeting 
you before. ' ' 

"I am a stranger to you, I know," said the 
lady; "but one day as I was walking along the 
street and my heart was heavy and all the world 
seemed to be frowning, 1 met you, and you had 
such an encouraging look on your face that it 



202 I'HE HIDt)E:fcT LIFEI 

cheered my heart; and I desire to thank yon 
for that encouraging countenance. ' ' 

A cheerful disposition will bring cheer to 
many hearts unknown. Living much in the pre- 
sence of God will radiate your soul with a 
beauteous light that will make you a blessing 
among men. In the secret closet is where the 
soul becomes filled with a sweet fragrance that 
will be borne into the lives of others. In the 
secret closet the soul will be lighted up with a 
heavenly radiance that will make the counte- 
nance beam like the outshining of an altar-fire. 
Those who live much in converse with God have 
more than even the tender words of human 
sympathy and love ; they have words fresh with 
power and beauty from the heart of God. They 
are the light of the world, and their light casts 
its bright beams far into the gloom of sorrow. 
A letter recently received contained these words : 
^^Oh! speak some encouraging word to my 
despairing soul." 

Some one is trudging, weary and worn, 

Along life's rugged way; 
Strength is fast failing, hope almost gone, 

Feet are going astray. 



OE, WALKS WITH GOD. 203 

Speak a kind word, his lone heart to cheer; 

Wipe from his eye the sorrowing tear; 
Drive from his life the gloom and despair; 

Lend him a hand to-day. 

The winds are blowing wildly and chill, 

Filling some heart with fear; 
Some one is toiling long up the steep hill 

Under a load of care. 

Some one^s tossing on life's ocean wave, 

No one to pity, no one to save; 
Eush, my brother, with heart true and brave, 

Help his burdens to bear. 

Be up and doing while it is day. 

Soon the long night will come; 
Your life is fleeing swiftly away, 

Soon 'twill be past and gone. 

Do what you can to help those in need, 

Be a blessing by word and by deed; 
Let '* Living for Others'' be ever your creed. 

Heaven will give you a crown. 



Correct Counting. 

Much loss has been sustained because of mis- 
takes in counting. Some men have failed in 



204 THE HIDDEK LIJ'E J 

business because of being careless in tlieii* count- 
ing. A man adding several columns of figures 
had reached the sum of one hundred thousand. 
At this juncture some one spoke to him, and he 
turned to have a few words of conversation. 
When he resumed his work, he wrote ten thou- 
sand. His few words of conversation cost him 
ninety thousand dollars. 

With relation to spiritual things be careful 
in your counting. Count according to the rule. 
In mathematics we have rules J:o guide us in our 
counting. If those rules are followed, we never 
make a mistake, but get the answer. Thus, it is 
said that 2 plus 3 plus 5 are 10. Now, if we 
count according -to this rule of science, we shall 
always get 10 for an answer. If we should count 
thus : 2 plus 3 plus 5 are 8, we should not get 
the correct answer, for we should not have done 
what the science of mathematics says. Now, 
suppose that some day you have two trials, the 
next day three trials, and the next day five trials 
—what will they amount to? If you count ac- 
cording to the rule, they will amount to ^^all 
joy." You may set down in a column all your 
trials and temptations ; and when you add them 
up, they amount to ^'all joy." If in counting 



OK, WALKS WITH GOD. 205 

them up you get any other result than ' ' all joy, ' ' 
you have not counted in accordance with the 
rule. 

A sister went with her eggs to the market. 
The grocer was engaged in counting the eggs 
brought in by another woman. The sister asked 
him the price of eggs. He gave no heed to her, 
but kept on counting the eggs. She again asked, 

'^Mr. , what are you paying for eggs this 

morning?" He gave her no heed, but kept on 
at his work. Now, had he stopped to talk with 
the woman, he would have forgotten his count 
and would have become confused. 

Many times amid the cares and trials of life 
Satan will come to you and suggest that the way 
is too hard and your trials are too severe. Give 
no heed to him, but go on counting it all joy. 
But he will persist and say, ' ' You can never 
stand." Count God as being able to make you 
stand. But Satan will say, ' ' This is indeed 
working bad." Give no heed to what he says, 
but count everything as working for your good. 
He may say that God does not love you, or 3^ou 
would not have such trials. Count the love 
of God as everlasting. Satan may whisper, 
^'Yqu are not saved." Give no heed to him, 



206 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

but count the blood of Jesus as cleansing you 
from all sin. 

Count everything according to the Bible rule, 
and you will have no failures nor losses. Count 
God faithful; count everything a blessing; 
count all joy. 

If you value your peace of soul, hold no con- 
versation with Satan. If you stop to talk with 
him you will forget to count all things joy and 
will become confused. The devil is your enemy ; 
he seeks to do you harm ; he strives to get you 
to miss your count. Do not for a moment listen 
to the words of one who seeks to harm you. 
Count according to God's rule, and the answer 
will be— victory. 



1 



God Is Real. 

Those who please God must believe that he is 
and that he is a rewarder of those who diligently 
seek him. It is not every one that implicitly 
believes at all times that God is. In the midst 
of sore trial some forget that he is. One 
precious secret of happiness in the Christian 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 207 

life is always to know that God is and that he 
is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him. 

God is with his people in every little affair of 
every-day life. In him we live and move and 
have our being. These words have great depth. 
They imply a close walk with God. Let me ask 
you to turn to this text and read it. It is Acts 
17 : 28. Ohj how highly significant are the words, 
^^For we are also his offspring!" God will 
care for his children. Then, let us trust him; 
live upon him and in him by faith. 

We need not have a care nor a fear. We 
need not be troubled about what we shall wear 
or what we shall eat. Jesus himself tells us 
that we should take no thought about what we 
shall eat. To have us comprehend something of 
his care in feeding us and of how free we can be 
from any anxious thought about such things, 
he tells us to take a lesson from the birds of the 
air. ^^ Behold," he says, ''the fowls of the air: 
for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor 
gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father 
feedeth them. Are ye not much better than 
they?" Mat. 6: 26. He does not say ^^ their 
heavenly Father," but it is ^^your heavenly 
Father ' ' that feeds the little birds. He is simply 



208 THE HIDDEK LIFE; 

their Creator, but he is your Father. A man 
may create a machine ; but there is a vast dif- 
ference between the relationship of the man to 
the machine and that of the man to the child 
of whom he is the father. A man owns a flock 
of hens and goes out to feed them, but will he 
not much more feed that child of his standing 
by his side? Oh! how can you ever become 
anxious about what you are going to eat and 
look unto man for help? Look to God, and to 
him alone. He hears the young ravens when 
they cry, and will he not hear your cry ? 

Jesus at another time in his endeavors to 
teach his disciples that the Father constantly 
cared for them and that they should not there- 
fore ever have a fear, said, ^'Are not two spar- 
rows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall 
not fall on the ground without your Father. ' ' 
Mat. 10 : 29. You will notice that he again says 
' ' your Father, ' ' not ' ' their Father. " It is your 
Father that cares for the tiny sparrows so that 
not one falls, except as he in his loving provi- 
dence sees best. 

Sometimes you can purchase two apples for a 
penny, but if you take two pennies ' worth, you 
can get five, Thus, the fifth qne cQsts really 



OK^ WALKS WITH GOD. 209 

nothing. Luke, in recording what Jesus said to 
his disciples about God's care of them, says, 
^^Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings? 
and not one of them is forgotten before God.T 
Luke 12: 6. By taking two farthings' worth 
they could get five sparrows. This fifth one, 
which was ^Hhrown in," was not forgotten be- 
fore God. If such is his care of his creatures of 
time, what must be his care of his child of eter- 
nity? Why, ^^even the very hairs of your head 
are all numbered. ' ' The mother has great care 
for her child, but where is the mother that daily 
counts the hairs on her baby's head to leani 
when one has fallen? God in his care for his 
children numbers the hairs on their heads. 
^^Fear not therefore." Our Father keeps us 
as the apple of his eye. He is ever guiding, 
guarding, and leading those who put their trust 
in him. His leadings may sometimes be over 
stony places, but in his love he does that which 
is best. I know not the author of the following 
lines, but they are so beautiful I beg to be al- 
lowed to give them here. 



210 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

''Not always into quiet ways 

He leadeth thee; 
Not always in the peaceful days 

ShaU thy lot be; 
But whether he send toil or rest, 
Know that his way, is always best 

Eternally. 

"Trust thou the Lord with simple heart, 

Nor wish to know 
More than his Spirit would impart 

Or his word show. 
Plain the commandments he has given, 
Narrow the path which leads to heaven; 

Then onward go. 

''Firm be thy footstep all the way, 

Turn not aside; 
His precious word keep and obey, 

Eightly divide; 
Fear not to tread a darksome road. 
For he will share thy heaviest load 

And safely guide. 

"Until at last he bringeth thee 

All sorrows past. 
Where thou shalt never sorrow see — 

Home, home at last. 
Then shalt thou, entering into rest. 
Own that his way was always best 

From first to last.'' 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 211 

A sister in my home congregation recently 
had this experience: She, with her three small 
children, had gone to a distant State to visit her 
friends. On her return journey she came into 
a large city soon after nightfall. She could not 
get a train out of the city to her home before 
the next morning. She had written ahead to a 
friend of hers to meet her at the station and to 
take her to his home to spend the night. But 
he failed to come, and she was left alone in this 
large city. At first she was much perplexed, 
but remembering her God, she said: ^^Now, 
Lord, I know thou art real. I am thy child, 
and I am in need of help. I look to thee; be 
thou my helper." At this moment a lady, ap- 
proaching her, said, ^^You appear to be a 
stranger here."— ^^I am alone with my chil- 
dren and know no one," the sister replied. The 
lady then asked her to tarry there for a moment 
and said she would soon return. In a short 
time she came back with two other ladies. After 
inquiring more about the sister's circumstances 
they invited her to go with them. She was a 
little suspicious at first, but believing it was God 
answering prayer, she went confidently on. They 
took her to a hotel^ ordered a room, supper^ 



212 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

and breakfast for lier and her children, and pay- 
ing the bill, went on their way. This is an in- 
stance of God's caring for those who trust in 
him. 

I conld fill a large volume with instances of 
God's proving himself to be a real and living 
God, but I will relate only one more. It oc- 
curred only three weeks ago. A brother was in 
need, and he prayed God to supply the need. 
One day he received a letter. Upon opening 
it, he found that it contained a gold dollar, and 
a letter which read thus: '^I have owed you 
seventy-five cents for fou7 years. The other 
night as I lay awake, I remembered my debt. I 
had a great desire to send the money to you at 
once, but I was not the possessor of five cents. 
Early the next morning, as I was walking across 
my field, I saw something shining. On picking 
it up, I found it to be a gold dollar, which I 
now send to you." 

To have a close walk with God is to be ever 
conscious that God is always really with you, 
just as if you could see him and hear his voice. 
Suppose some dark night a number of wicked 
men should gather about your home to do you 
harm and Jesus should appear in your room so 



on, walk:s wi^h god. 213 

that you could see him and should speak so that 
you could hear him saying, ' ' I will never leave 
thee, nor forsake thee." You would in a feel- 
ing of security lie back upon your pillow and 
say, ' ' The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear 
what man shall do unto me. ' ' Now, he is in your 
room and does say those words to you as really 
as if you saw him and heard him. Make God 
real to you in everything in life, and your walk 
with ^^ip will be sweet. 



Growing in Grace. 

' ' But grow in grace and in the knowledge ol 
our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. ' ' 2 Pet. 3 : 18. 
To grow in grace we must necessarily grow also 
in the knowledge of Jesus. We should get no 
stronger in the grace of God if we did not get 
to know him better. This is a command, or an 
expression of God's will to us. Think of it! 
God wills you to grow in grace ; and if you are 
not growing in grace, you are not accomplishing 
God's will. This is a weighty matter. Growing 
in grace includes more than the pleasure and 
the hf^nefit of your own inprovement; God is 



214 THB HIDDEN LIFE ; 

grieved if you are not growing. A parent is 
grieved if his child does not grow. On this sub- 
ject there are a few points we wish to consider. 
They are— I. What is grace? II. What are not 
evidences of growing in grace. III. How to 
grow in grace. IV. Some evidences of growth 
in grace. 

I. What is grace? The common brief defini- 
tion of grace is favor, but this is too brief to be 
comprehensive. Grace is the favor of God to 
us. It is his good-will. It is an impartation 
of strength from God. We are saved by grace. 
This is the favor, or good-will, of God and also 
the influence of the Spirit renewing the heart 
and imparting life to the soul. The apostle says, 
'^I can do all things through Christ, who 
strengtheneth me. ' ' By the strengthening grace 
of Christ he could do all things. His grace is 
sufficient to help us bear trials and afflictions. 
God gives us grace to resist temptation, to en- 
dure afflictions, and to be conquerors over sin 
and Satan. We are commanded to be strong in 
the grace which was in Christ Jesus. It is God's 
grace that enables us to do, and it is his grace 
that makes us what we are. 



OE^ WALKS WITH GOD. 215 

II. What are not evidences of growth in 
grace. Growing in knowledge is not a sure 
proof that we are growing in grace. You can 
not grow in grace without having a greater 
knowledge of God, but you can gain a knowledge 
of God and not grow in grace. Some have con- 
cluded they were better Christians, were 
stronger in grace, and were more highly pleas- 
ing to God because they had learned more about 
the Bible and about what constitutes true Chris- 
tian living. I am acquainted with people that 
know much about God, the Bible, and the plan 
of salvation, and yet have no grace at all. Be 
not deceived. That you know better how Chris- 
tians should live is no sure evidence that you 
are growing in grace. That you can pray longer 
and testify or preach better, or be more eloquent 
and forward and active in these duties and 
have less embarrassment in their performance, 
is not sure evidence of your growing in grace. 
By mere practice and human effort one can 
make improvement in all these ways. 

III. How to grow in grace. This is of greatest 
interest to the Christian. The farmer wants to 
know all he can about how to grow the largest 



216 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

crop of grain; and the more valuable the crop, 
the more studious he is to know how to grow 
it. The stockman desires to know how to pro- 
mote the growth of his animals. To that end 
he studies books and experiments. The more 
valuable an animal is, the more careful he is 
that it should make good growth. The Christian 
desires to know how to grow in grace. Some 
one may say, ^'I do know how." I have met 
farmers who knew much about farming, but I 
have never met one such farmer that was not 
eager to know more. A farmer that thinks he 
knows all about farming and needs not to know 
any more does not know anything as he ought 
to know it. All true, wide-awake Christians are 
eager to know how to grow in grace. 

To grow in grace the conditions for growth 
must be complied with. The sincere milk of 
the word must be desired. There can be no 
growth without this. The word of God pro- 
duces growth in grace as naturally as food pro- 
motes physical development. You must eat 
God's word. This is the only food that con- 
tains all the elements necessary for symmetrical 
Christian growth. In Acts 20: 32 we read, ^^I 
commend you to God, and to the word of his 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 217 

grace, which is able to build you up. " It is the 
word of grace that will build you up into a 
strong pillar in the kingdom of God. You must 
feed on the word of his grace, upon the sincere 
milk of his word. The Christian can no more 
grow in grace; he can no more get to be like 
Jesus or have a closer walk with him, without 
feeding frequently and bountifully upon God's 
word, than the child can grow as he should with- 
out eating the foods so necessary to growth. 

But it seems I hear some one saying, ^^I have 
not time. ' ' Then you can not grow. Oh ! why 
will people make such an excuse to themselves ? 
Is growth in grace worth nothing to your soul? 
Do you not regard God's will or pleasure? I 
pray God to awaken you out of your indifference 
and fire your heart with a desire to be built 
up in the grace of God. 

Read the Bible daily, thoughtfully, prayer- 
fully, devouringly. Read it believingly. If you 
believe it fully, then it becomes a truth in your 
heart. Suppose we open the Bible to the forty- 
sixth Psalm and read, ' ' God is our refuge and 
strength, a very present help in trouble. ' ' Be- 
heving this fully, makes you strong; you can 
face any danger; you can conquer any foe. 



218 THE HIDDEK LIFE; 

When we implicitly believe the first verse, then 
the second one becomes our own experience— 
'^ Therefore will not we fear." Though all 
things around us are crumbling, we sweetly rest 
in Grod. Eemember, you must daily feast upon 
the word of God if you would grow in grace. 
This will require time. You can not get food 
for your soul from the word of God by hurriedly 
reading a chapter. You must meditate upon it 
and get it down into your heart by believing it 
fully. It seems I am so unable to say what I 
feel is needful to be said that many of my dear 
readers might be made to understand the need 
of taking plenty of time to feast upon the Scrip- 
tures. In the early morning take time to be 
alone with God, and in the twilight hour, oh! 
do take time to commune with Him who loves 
you and is all to you. 

Another condition of growth in grace is per- 
fect obedience to all the word and will of God. 
Be careful not to grieve or quench the Spirit of 
God. The Holy Spirit is the medium through 
which life from God flows into and through the 
soul. Close up those little channels in the 
young oak through which flows the life-giving 
sap, and what will be the result? You will meet 



OU, WALKS WITH GOD. 219 

with the same result in your spiritual being if 
you grieve the Spirit of God. If you refuse to 
do what the Holy Spirit is calling on you to do, 
you lose grace. If the Spirit of God is speaking 
to your heart and mind to visit that poor sick 
man, to give of your means for the cause of 
Christ, or to fast and pray for the needy and 
the work of God, you will degenerate if you do 
not obey. 

If you have a desire to grow in grace, see to 
it that you are active in every Christian duty. 
But you are not to be active in Christian duty 
for the mere purpose of growth. The child is not 
active in its play for the mere purpose of grow- 
ing, but is simply following out the law of life, 
and growth is the result. In being active in 
Christian duties, you are merely obeying the 
law of spiritual life in your inner being, and the 
result is growth. We do not, as I have said in a 
previous chapter, gain heaven merely by good 
works, and yet we must work as if we did there- 
by gain heaven. Many to-day are deceived. 
They think they are Christians and growing in 
grace because they are active in church-work, 
etc. It is not our works that make us Chris- 
tians; we must have life in the soul— the life of 



220 THE HIDDEK LIFE; 

God. As well take up the dead body of a child 
and walk it about to bring it into life as to think 
of becoming a Christian by good works. All 
the performances of a jumping-jack will not 
bring it into life, for it is a dead body. All the 
activity in church-work of a dead sinner will 
never bring him into life. But when a child is 
bom into life, then in obedience to a law of that 
life it exercises, and the result is growth. The 
dead professor or the sinner must be born of 
the Spirit into spiritual life; then in obedience 
to a law of that life he is active in every Chris- 
tian duty, and growth is the result. 

Let us open our Bible to Gal. 6: 9, 10 and 
read— ^' And let us not be weary in well doing; 
for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. 
As we have therefore opportunity, let us do 
good unto all men, especially unto them who 
are of the household of faith." To refuse to 
do good to all men or to any man as we have 
opportunity is to grieve the Holy Spirit and to 
lose grace out of the soul. 

Another requisite for growth is intense earn- 
estness. The only effectual way to increase in 
the grace of God is to be deeply interested in 
the things of God. It is folly to expect to 



OR, WALKS WITH GOD. 221 

grow in grace if yon are nnconcerned abont the 
canse of God. If yon are not intently interested 
in the salvation of sonls and are not doing all 
yon can to save them, yon can make no progress 
in spiritnal life. There is a great lack of in- 
terest in the salvation of sonls. I have been in 
homes where were many ornamental and ex- 
pensive things, which told me of an awfnl blind- 
ness to God's will. Oh ! how can man love sonls 
and be interested in them as Jesns was and 
spend money for unnecessary things ? 

Of how to grow in grace this is the snm. 1. 
Read the word of God daily, prayerfully, de- 
vouringly. 2. Be deeply interested in the cause 
of God and the salvation of souls. 3. Be prompt 
to obey the commandments of the Bible and the 
leadings of the Holy Spirit. 4. Be active in 
eveiy possible Christian duty. 5. '* Praying al- 
ways with all prayer and supplication in the 
Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perse- 
verance and supplication for all saints." Eph. 
6:18,19. 

IV. Some evidences of growth in grace. Ex- 
periencing greater joy in acts of self-denial for 
the good and benefit of others is an evidence of 
growing in the grace of God. Look closely for 



222 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

a moment into your heart. As sure as you are 
growing in grace, so sure do you find gi^eater 
joy in denying self for the welfare and the 
happiness of others and for the cause of God. 
You can not have this fact too thoroughly im- 
pressed upon your mind and heart. Some are 
so full of grace that it is a joy to them to give 
to the poor or to the cause of God the last cent 
they have. They deprive themselves of luxuries 
and sometimes even of the necessities of life, 
that they may do something for Jesus and per- 
ishing souls. 

Another e^^dence of growing in grace is get- 
ting farther from the world. To comprehend 
what is meant by being dead to the world is very 
difficult for many. It may sound hard and 
harsh to some, but nevertheless I am sure that 
many do not know what a complete death to the 
world implies. They have too much mind and 
thought about the world and too much commun- 
ion with it. Only God can help people to see. 

Another evidence of growing in grace is hav- 
ing more implicit faith in God and a stepping 
out on his promises with a feeling of security. 
You have less fear of any earthly evil. You do 
not fear the terror by day nor the arrow that 



OR^ WALKS WITH GOD. 223 

flieth by night nor the destruction that wasteth 
at noon-day. 

Each person has an individual self-life 
though he be sanctified wholly. In this self -life 
lies a sensibility. By this sensibility I mean 
affections, desires, feelings, emotions, etc. 
These desires and feelings, it may be, overcome 
the will, and the purpose of God is not accom- 
plished. For instance, your good judgment may 
decide that you should give a certain sum of 
money to the poor, but your feelings rebel. 
Your feelings, or emotions, may cause you to 
do some things sometimes to attract attention 
or to appear a little better than you may really 
be, but you do not will it so. Now, growing in 
grace is for the will to gain more power and 
these feelings to be lessened in power. Some 
persons, though sanctified, yet because of a pe- 
culiarity of their constitution easily give way to 
lightness, some to impatience. Some are much 
hurt when spoken ill of , and others have feelings 
of pleasure when they are well spoken of. To 
grow in grace is to gain power in the soul and 
to overcome and still the voice of these feelings. 

Still another evidence of growth in grace is 
becoming more consciously impressed with the 



224 THE HIDDEN LIFE; 

mercies of God. You have a deeper sense of 
gratitude in your heart to God for his goodness. 
If you are growing in grace and are flourishing 
as the palm-tree, you will become more deeply 
affected in your heart by the goodness and the 
mercy of God, and are gaining a closer walk 
with God. 



THE END. 



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